


Old Blood New Money

by loviet



Category: GOT7
Genre: Action, Bodyguard, Crime, Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Family, Fluff, Gang, Guns, Hurt/Comfort, Kidnapping, Romance, Strangers to Lovers, Trafficking (not main characters), Violence, mafia, single parent, toxic family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-13
Updated: 2021-01-12
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:28:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 38
Words: 247,575
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23124025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loviet/pseuds/loviet
Summary: Close your eyes.Now, imagine a world where you spent 15 years and 2 degrees accomplishing yourself with nothing but hefty loans and your own wits.Imagine working your way up the corporate ladder until you become an executive of a prestigious investment firm.Imagine being independent for nearly all your adult life, never leaning on anyone to fight your battles or carry your burdens.Now knowing all this, imagine seeing your estranged crime lord of a father in your office telling you that he’s been using you and your company to clean dirty money with you none the wiser.And now very dangerous people want you, the mistaken money launderer, dead.So, much to your hatred, your father offers up a solution.His right-hand man, one of his most trusted, to protect you.
Relationships: Mark Tuan / OC, Mark Tuan / Seo Heiran
Comments: 48
Kudos: 42





	1. First

“Oh god, no. Please. I don't want to die.”

They always seem to say that whenever Mark paid them a visit, it baffled him.

God couldn’t save them now. Why bother begging?

If the mere sight of him sent terror shockwaves running down their spines, it didn’t make any sense why they’d keep doing things that forced him to stand in front of them with a glare. Don’t cry when you see the Devil if you’ve spent your entire life sinning.

He clicked his tongue as he stood in a dark alleyway and pressed his gun against the man’s forehead, his tattooed fingers wrapped around the trigger, “Should’ve thought of that before GOT7 needed to send me.”

It wasn’t that he liked killing, he was simply good at it.

He was a good shot, clean, and didn’t care for theatrics like Jackson.

Most importantly, he was loyal.

Mark pulled the trigger fast, the sound of the gun firing echoed loudly as the man’s head snapped back and he crumpled to the ground. He stood over the body, blood still spilling out of the man’s head as he pulled a small handkerchief out of his pocket to polish off his gun. There was blood on it, and he hated when he got blood on it.

It was messier than he thought, he was hoping for something more innocuous, but the man had a bit more fight in him than he expected. He would probably have to call one of his guys to clean this up, which was another hassle in and of itself, the cleanup guys always gave him an earful.

The only thing he hated more than a mess, was people who couldn't follow orders, people who thought they could bite the hand that fed them, and people who thought he'd show mercy. 

He didn't take kindly to traitors. 

And he _never_ showed mercy.

He lifted his head, his blond hair falling over his eye as he stared at the men watching him with a mix of fear and resentment in their eyes.

“This is why you don’t cross us. This is why you don’t fucking skim ten grand off of our money and think we won’t find out. ”

\-----

She knew that she should be paying more attention.

This was an important meeting, with executives from every department huddled in the conference room to discuss how they were expected to proceed now that the VP of Human Resources was suddenly fired on the eve of a major merger. This affected all of them.

But _fuck_ her Louboutin heels were killing her and the pain was all she could think about.

Seo Heiran hated how much she loved expensive designer heels, they made her heart skip a beat but made her feet scream bloody murder whenever she had them on for more than 5 minutes. She rotated her ankle under the table, resisting the urge to kick off the suede royal blue red bottoms.

Torture. This was honest to god, modern-day torture.

“We’re moving fast, trying to find a replacement, but we need to make sure that we continue to reaffirm to the Samsung reps that everything is fine and that we have a succession plan in place. I’m going to speak to the HR department and see if their Director would consider stepping in as the VP until we have someone.”

She nodded in time with everyone else, looking over CEO’s shoulder at the grand painting hung on the wall. She had to appreciate the old man loved his art, a passion that they had both bonded over when she had first started work at the city’s largest investment firm as the VP of Finance. 

He somehow managed to land some of the most lucrative pieces of art that she didn’t think a single person could possibly own. It was one of the reasons she looked forward to coming in each day. She loved standing in the halls of this building just staring at the most beautiful works of art. She would find herself getting lost in elegant brush strokes, losing track of time as she transported herself to somewhere magical.

She assumed that the works that hung on the walls of their building belonged in museums, but as she stared at Vincent Van Gogh’s Café Terrance at Night, she could only long to be sitting in a café like that right now instead of being at this meeting.

“Heiran, continue working on the estimates of the merger. It seems the cost continues to grow, but I want to make sure that we stay on course, even if that means making cuts.” He ordered. “And keep coddling that tech start-up, they like you, they’ve been with you for ages and if everything goes according to plan with Samsung, they could be enticed to acquire a growing business.”

Silence ticked by before she blinked, realizing that he was addressing her, she sat up and nodded tersely in the same impassive, cold-hearted way that everyone had grown to praise her for. “I have a meeting scheduled with the Director for a progress report.”

The CEO nodded, satisfied, before turning his attention to the VP of Legal, rambling on about international law as she zoned back out of the meeting. No one ever pressed her for more information when it came to these meetings. 

They used to call her the Dragon, behind her back. It was because she was ruthless with her standards, sharp with her tongue, infallible with her decisions, excepted 150% and spent every hour possible at the office; the Dragon’s Den, apparently.

But she didn’t have much of a choice.

She was the youngest executive here and constantly felt the need to prove that she deserved a seat at the table. She worked three jobs in university, just to pay off a fraction of her student loan. She didn’t have the connections or old money that half the people here used to get to where they were. She worked her way up from an intern and drank coffee as meals to save money.

So, though her face would never betray her, she wore the Dragon name like a badge of honor.

If only those people knew that their Dragon was currently daydreaming about a Parisian Café and a breezy summer night.

\-----

Heiran walked into her floor while scrolling through emails that had gathered on her phone when she was locked away at that god-awful meeting. Her hair, long and black, was getting in her face and she was trying to schedule a meeting with Samsung’s Finance VP.

Maybe she’d just chop it all off, let it brush against her collarbones.

“Your five o’clock canceled.”

Heiran’s steps stuttered at the voice, a voice that certainly was _not_ her dedicated overzealous personal assistant who liked to pretend that she didn’t idolize her. She lifted her gaze and felt every bone in her body melt at the sight of the little girl with askew pigtails spinning around in a chair.

“Really? Did they want to reschedule?”

The girl beamed at her, “No! They said that they want you to spend the rest of the day with your cute daughter.”

Her lips quirked as she slipped her phone away before getting on her knees and holding her arms open, “Well, if that’s what they said, then I guess I have to do it.”

The little girl squealed in joy and jumped out of the chair before racing into Heiran’s arms. She lifted the girl up and walked into her office, kicking the door closed with the base of her heel, “How are you, sunshine? How was school?”

“Good. We learned about the water cycle today. Did you know that rain comes from water that’s already on the ground?” She sounded astonished like Mother Nature had personally offended her. Heiran swore that her heart flipped, three, four, five times.

Her entire office was pristine, with the only décor consisting of awards lining bookshelves, textbooks, her degree, a single potted plant and 5 different pictures of her daughter who had said that any more would be too embarrassing.

She gasped in feigned shock as she set them down on the couch in her office before fixing her pigtails, “No way. How is that possible?”

“Okay, it’s this thing called evaporation, and can you believe it? The rain falls, then it evaporates off of the ground and goes back up into the sky.” Her eyes were wide and nothing short of sparkling as she explained herself, her tiny arms waving around.

God, she would die for this little girl.

“Okay Lucy, I couldn’t find apple juice, but I stole someone’s orange juice out of the staff fridge, I don’t think they’ll notic—oh god.”

Heiran looked up when her personal assistant walked in, holding a glass of juice in her hand, “Hi Eun.”

She looked positively mortified as she pushed her glasses further up her nose. Heiran remembered interviewing Eun, she had gone to her alma mater, graduated at the top of her class, had an impeccable resume and was utterly nervous during the interview.

When she made it to the second round of interviews, background checks were run, and the head of security almost keeled over laughing when he discovered Eun’s twitter account was essentially a Heiran fan account. She obsessed over her career, retweeted every article she was in, and tweeted about her big aspirations to follow in her footsteps. 

Safe to say, Heiran felt good about her choice.

“I’m so sorry for being away from my desk.” Eun stuttered, unsure what to do with the glass of juice in her hand, “She asked for juice and I was going to run out and grab some, but we were out of apple and—”

Heiran ran her fingers through Lucy’s hair, “It’s fine. Sunshine, say thank you for the juice.”

“Thank you, Eun!” She cheered as she accepted the glass and took a big gulp. Eun let out a stuttering breath, she couldn’t tell how mad Heiran was, she was always gentle when her daughter was around, even if she was angry inside.

Heiran would’ve smiled if she didn’t have a reputation to maintain, “And remember, I’m your boss, not her, you don’t have to do anything she tells you.”

“I didn’t tell her! I _asked_ her.” Lucy punctuated.

Eun’s face flushed as she nodded, “Y-Yes. Sorry. Will do.”

Heiran sighed and looked down at Lucy, feeling a tinge of sadness. With work in the way, she didn’t spend nearly enough time with a little girl who needed constant love and attention. She didn’t have a father waiting to pick her up from her lessons or siblings to fight with. She just had a driver, her classmates, and Heiran.

Fuck, she wasn’t even 30 years old yet, how was she supposed to know how to be a good parent? She never had a chance to prepare for this.

“Eun, cancel my 5.”

Her eyes widened, “With the Director? Isn’t that really important?”

She took the glass of juice and set it on the table before lifting Lucy up and going to gather her things.

“This is far more important.”

\-----

Mark sometimes wondered if there was something fundamentally wrong with him.

Maybe he was just wired wrong and there was nothing he could do about it.

He turned his head and looked at the woman lying naked in bed next to him, the same woman that he would always find himself in bed with even though there was nothing specifically enticing about her except a willing participant. Someone who knew what he did for a living and still kissed him.

He could already see Jinyoung rolling his eyes if he knew they were together.

Sometimes, he wondered what it would be like to wake up in the morning next to someone and still feel that delirious curl in your gut from the night before when you stared at her lips outside your door. Now, it was just reaching for someone who was convenient and waking up feeling empty. But then again, he wouldn’t really be waking up next to _anyone_ if they knew the things he did the night before in the shadows of the moon.

Killing in cold blood wasn’t a common turn-on.

Mark knew better than to let her lead him back to his place after he returned from cleaning that mess up, but if he turned her down, he’d be expected to find someone else and he really wasn’t in the mood for that. That’s why he shared his nights with her but made sure he was never around in the morning. His phone buzzed next to his head, snapping him out of his thoughts and he rolled over to scroll through the messages.

_Jinyoung: Boss wants to see us_

_Jinyoung: …her too._

Yeonhee shifted next to him, letting out a groan as she stretched. He knew this routine by now. Before she could reach out to try to curl up next to him, pretending they were a couple, he rolled out of bed, grabbing his boxers, “We need to go to headquarters. You can shower first.”

She stared at his back where a collage of tattoos made up the surface of his torso, ran down the lengths of his arms and ended over his knuckles. “We could shower together, Mark.”

He said nothing, choosing to ignore her request as he shoved his fingers through his blonde hair while walking to his closet. “Hurry or we’ll be late.”

She huffed, kicking the blankets away and storming off to the bathroom. He didn’t know why every morning she reacted the same way when she _knew_ that he was not interested in giving her the totality of she wanted.

She washed blood money and made it clean.

He found clean people and made them bloody.

They just didn’t match.

\-----

Mark found people to be complicated, he liked to boil them down to a single trait, it made it easier to manage.

For example, his Boss was his savior that laundered money.

Yeonhee was the girl he slept with but didn’t like who turned illegal money into something usable.

Jackson was the comedian who supplied, cleaned, and disposed of all the weapons they used internally.

Jinyoung was the closest thing he ever had to a best friend and found numbers easier to understand than people.

Mark, simply put, was a hired gun that made sure everyone stayed in their place.

It worked when this was how he saw people.

It made them easier to read.

“Jinyoungie! We’re here!”

Jinyoung flinched, his jaw tensing and his lips turned down into a grimace as he looked over his laptop at Yeonhee who skipped towards him with Mark walking into his office after her. “So, it seems…how unfortunate.”

She stuck her tongue out at him, but he just looked back at his computer, not sparing Mark a second glance, “Go check your office, you were sent another shipment of cash.”

She pouted and walked up behind him, staring at the numbers on his screen, “But I just got here.”

“Do your fucking job, Yeonhee, don’t just cling around Mark all day. Be useful for once.” He hissed; she always tested her patience; thinking that fucking the Boss’s right-hand man somehow gave her a free pass.

But she just rolled her eyes, unfazed. There was no fazing anyone here when people walked around with a minimum of 3 weapons hidden on their body. “Fine, don’t pop a vessel, grandpa.”

He stared at Mark incredulously after she left, “She knows you’re older than me, right?”

Mark said nothing and shrugged, a trademark, before sitting in the seat across his desk, “What does he want to see us about?”

“All of us. I don’t know, he seemed panicked, I think something happened but he’s not telling us anything.” Jinyoung muttered while eyeing his friend up and down. “Also, dressing in all black? Very cliché of you. Let me guess, ‘ _it hides the bloodstains.’_ ”

Mark frowned, ignoring the jab, “He never said anything to me. He always tells me when something comes up.”

“Maybe if you stayed back here last night, instead of leaving with the succubus, he would’ve kept you in the loop.” Jinyoung snorted.

Mark narrowed his eyes at him, “Succubus is a strong word. I was an active participant.”

“Oh, I’m very aware. You’re a male succubus.” Jinyoung said, a-matter-a-factly while shutting his laptop. “Just sucking the life out of her from between her le—”

Mark stood with a glare, “Let’s go. You talk too much for someone who wears glasses and plays with a calculator all day.”

“What is it about her, huh? You’ve shot, stabbed and choked people to death but every night after a kill when she bats her lashes, you go home with her?” He grumbled, setting his glasses down.

Mark eyebrow twitched, if he was talking to anyone else, he probably would’ve already knocked them out cold for prying, but it was Jinyoung, and for how cold Mark held himself, there wasn’t a lot he wouldn’t do for Jinyoung, “Why don’t you go out romancing regulars? Because when you wake up, you remember what you do for a living and you feeling like a piece of shit and you remember you can’t ever have anything more. So right now, this is good for me. It’s simple.”

Jinyoung trailed behind Mark as they walked the halls, “No it’s not. Because instead of waking up remembering what you do for a living, with Yeonhee, you wake up remembering that you’ll never wake up next to someone you actually want to be with.”

“I hate having you around.” Mark muttered, nodding at people passing by as he walked to their Boss’s office. Everyone always greeted Mark, he was the favorite, the right-hand man, it paid to be on his good side.

Jinyoung just stared at Mark’s silver-ish blonde hair before grinning, “Your roots are growing out.”

“Fuck off.”

\-----

“Have a good night ma’am, you too little ma’am.” Her driver quipped as he helped Heiran out of the car with Lucy tucked against her neck.

She smiled gratefully as she took her purse from him, “Thank you again, I wouldn’t normally ask.”

“Anything for you two. See you tomorrow.”

She nodded and walked up the stairs to her grand house, one that took a good few years of saving up for before she could put down a deposit. The soles of her feet were screaming that she nearly cried when she shut the front door behind her and finally, _finally_ got to kick her stilettos off.

She closed her eyes and sighed as the cold tiled floors welcomed her, “Sunshine? We’re home.”

Lucy groaned against her collar before rubbing her eyes, “Can we have pancakes for dinner?”

Heiran was not a chef, she didn’t cook. She could make herself a salad, or her daughter a sandwich, but she rarely used her stove. She’d rather hire help or order take out.

But when her little girl looked at her with sleepy eyes and a groggy voice, Heiran was willing to put off sleep and sustain a few oil burns to make her breakfast for dinner. “Of course, sunshine. Strawberries?”

“Chocolate chip!”

Heiran snorted, “Not at 8PM. Nice try. Go get changed and wash up, okay?”

She set her down and watched her scurry up the spiral staircase. Maybe she couldn’t give her all the time and attention she deserved, but at least she would live comfortably, never worrying about not being able to do the things her friends can do because of money.

Money was never an issue.

Sighing, she untucked her Burberry silk blouse out from her skirt and grabbed an unused apron off the hook in her kitchen. A glass of wine sounded perfect right about now, but alcohol made her sleepy and she still had invoices to review before she went to sleep.

Instead, she pulled out her iPad and opened a recipe for pancakes before gathering ingredients. She paused, her arms full of flour and fruits when she caught sight of the picture of her late mother propped up next to a bowl of fruit. She hadn’t been in the kitchen in so long that she had forgotten she had that picture there.

An alarming lump grew in her throat and she quickly looked away, dumping everything on the counter and sorting them out. Her phone suddenly chimed, distracting her, and noticed an Instagram notification popped up. She rarely used the account, mainly to document pictures of Lucy and stay in touch with friends.

She scrolled through her feed, something she hadn’t done in a while and chewed on the inside of her lip. All her friends her age were taking aesthetic pictures of coffee shops, posting cute photos with their boyfriends and girlfriends and uploading videos of their vacations. Things that aligned with where most people her age were at in their lives.

Not a single one posted about being in the office for 12 hours a day and then being a mother for the remainder.

She clicked on the notification and saw a new comment had been posted under her latest picture of Lucy.

**_[Yuggie_] The amount of toys I have packed in my carry-on for this girl. Oof whipped hours are open_ **

She smiled at her friend’s message, liking the comment and counting down to the few days she had until he came home. It had been a while since she spent time with a friend.

Taking a deep breath, she set her phone to the side and rolled up the sleeves of her shirt, determined to win this war against her kitchen.

She could handle multi-million dollar accounts with her eyes closed, what's so tough about some pancakes?

\-----

“Hey man, you know what this is about? I’m trying to secure some AR-15s and the buyer is being a dick about it. I need to be dealing with that right now.” Jackson called out when Jinyoung and Mark walked in. It was the three of them now, but it wouldn’t be long until the entire team was packed in here.

Mark shook his head, his face blank as he took a seat, save for Jinyoung, he was known as a man of very few words around here, he liked to keep it that way. Jackson huffed and turned to Jinyoung for answers, but he only shrugged.

“Said it was urgent, nothing more. Mark doesn’t even know anything.”

Jackson’s eyes widened, if there was something happening in their headquarters, Mark was always the first to know. For him to be kept in the dark, that meant something bad, but no one voiced that out. “Dude, is that true?”

Mark’s gaze didn’t move from its spot on the wall, “Don’t call me dude.”

Jackson huffed in annoyance before quickly brightening back up, “Oh, and I almost forgot.”

Mark finally looked over at Jackson who was grinning, “My tattoo guy says he can get you in tomorrow night.”

“Are you kidding me?” Jinyoung scoffed, “Do you even have any bare skin left to get tattooed?”

Mark’s lips twitched as he looked down at the back of his hands, large flowers on the backs and G O T 7 carved on his fingers.

Jinyoung shook his head, “Just not on your neck please, god, I have to be seen in public with you.”

He nearly smiled at that jab, Jinyoung was never shy to let him know how he felt about the artistry painted across his body.

“Glad to see you gentlemen are catching up over tea.”

They all stood as their Boss walked in, the rest of their team trailing behind him. Yeonhee grinned at Mark but he moved his gaze to his Boss, dressed in a suit far too expensive especially compared to everyone else. It was hard not to exude power when you ran the largest underground criminal network in the country and _owned_ half the city. Racketeering is how the cops might describe it, investing in untapped markets is how his Boss would.

Jackson fired off into a joking rant about his day while Mark scanned the rest of the room, familiar faces, he didn’t know all their names, but he knew they did good work, they kept their heads down, they worked hard. He didn’t have to worry too much about keeping them in line. He nodded to himself, they had a good team.

“I know many of you are curious to why I’ve called this emergency meeting.”

Mark moved his gaze back to the Boss. His hair was slicked off his face, the sides greying and his crow’s feet prominent, but it didn’t detract from the utter power that radiated off the man in front of them. The man who saved him when he found out his parents died and had nowhere to go and no one to take him in.

“It seems, we have crossed territories.”

No one made a sound, but it felt as if everyone gasped.

This city was built on invisible borders, where underground organizations like GOT7’s could operate without gang wars erupting every day. If you stayed in your territory, you wouldn’t be touched. No one wanted to risk exposing themselves to forces above ground, so civility wasn't a choice if you wanted to survive. Unless you were trying to overthrow and claim more territory, everyone tried to play nice.

Allow chaos to happen as long as it happened within itself; as long as it stayed within its lines.

If turf wars broke out, it wouldn’t just be a threat of power, but also a threat of law enforcement sniffing around. GOT7 was always careful, they never overstepped their territory, except when they overtook Day6, but even that was meticulously planned over the course of weeks before the actual take over. 

The possibility that they crossed territories and screwed over another gang without the proper precautions in place for their eventual retaliation could be disastrous. 

Mark was the only one brave enough to speak, “How?”

The Boss shook his head, “I don’t know how it slipped through the cracks, but it seems as though one of our buyers had taken the money we laundered and purchased DS’s drugs but the money wasn’t cleaned properly, the cops traced it back to one of their guys and they were arrested. They think we set them up.”

Mark’s eyes shot to Yeonhee with a scowl, but it was Jinyoung who growled out what he was thinking, “Why the hell wasn’t it cleaned?”

“Don’t look at me! Everything that passes through me gets cleaned and cleaned well. Think what you want, but I don’t do shoddy work.” She said defensively.

Their Boss shook his head, “Now isn’t the time to figure out who’s to blame, we’ll deal with that later. The more pressing issue is that DS is going to start going after our ally to get to us and if something happens to them, all of our clients and allies are going to scatter to protect themselves and we’ll be screwed.”

“We’ll do whatever it takes.” Jackson said seriously.

He nodded and looked at Mark, “We need to be vigilant, to have a plan, this isn’t just keeping people in line, it’s about protecting important people, make sure nothing happens to them. Nothing.”

Mark leaned back in his seat, mulling over this new responsibility. He normally used his talents to threaten and coerce people, never to protect. Jinyoung frowned, “Why can’t we just pay for them to beef up their own security? Why do we need to send in one of our own?”

The Boss’s eyes twitched and Jinyoung immediately knew he spoke out of turn, but instead of snapping at him, he just sighed, “Because this ally doesn’t have adequate security. They don’t really know what they are up against.”

“Who is this ally?” Jackson asked in confusion.

“My daughter.”

**A/N:**

**First chapter of a new story is ooouuutttt.**

**What are we thinking???? How do we feel about our leads? Is it what you expected?**

**Comment and Upvote <3333**

**-loviet**


	2. Second

“And how’s the merger with Samsung moving along?” 

Heiran’s eyes darted up, the only indicator of her surprise. She rocked her ankle back and forth; her choice of heels this time were a pair of fabulous YSL red velvet pumps with gold-tipped heels. Red was her power colour. “I’m surprised you’ve kept up with the news. I imagine the co-owner of a successful tech start-up was too busy to notice.”

She looked across the conference room table at the young woman with thin silver-rimmed glasses perched on her nose. Aside from the back and forth negotiations that came with ensuring that an exploding business doesn’t decide to jump ship, she really enjoyed meeting with the young woman.

Someone so driven and accomplished in an industry that was never built for women to succeed in. Heiran liked picking the brain of the young innovator.

Yuna smiled, “What happens to your firm, happens to me. I like to know what allies my investors are making.”

“You have nothing to worry about, SmartLogic is my gem, I’m not looking to replace it. Samsung is just our way of leveraging into the tech industry. You know better than anyone how competitive it is and trying to invest in _good_ start-ups always ends up a bidding war where the deepest pocket wins. We want our pockets to be the Marianas Trench.” Heiran said with a slow smile.

Yuna sighed and took a sip from a glass of water, “We’re not looking to be bought out by a monopolizing giant. Our technology is incredibly valuable.”

Heiran felt a little guilty knowing that the end game is and would always be for SmartLogic to be bought out. But she learned early on in her life that a good lie was the strongest anesthetic. “We would never ask that of you or the company. Our goal is for _you_ to become a monopolizing giant.”

“I’m trusting you, Heiran, just as much as you’re trusting me. You’ve continuously invested in us and we’ve been good paying out equity and shares. We’ve demonstrated solid profit-making abilities. I want that relationship to continue.” Yuna pressed.

Heiran leaned back in her chair, her eyes pinned on hers even as an email popped up on her laptop from an executive from Samsung who was looking into SmartLogic’s business plan for the take over that very moment. At the end of the day, everyone has a price, no matter their morals or values. She’d find Yuna’s when the time was right.

And she’d present her an offer she couldn’t refuse.

She smiled, knowing everything was going as planned, the merger would be smooth, and she’d get a phenomenal bonus this quarter.

Maybe she’d take Lucy on a trip. 

“Don’t worry Yuna, your business is completely safe with me.”

\-----

“I’m going to fling myself into the ocean. I swear to _frick,_ Heiran.”

She strolled out of the conference room with a grin as she wedged her phone between her ear and her shoulder, “Don’t be so dramatic, Yugyeom, and saying ‘frick’ is worse than just saying ‘fuck’, you know.”

“I was supposed to be on a flight right now to Seoul, to you, to my friends, to my job and most importantly, to little Lucy and now I’m here for another month. I’m going to scream.” He muttered.

She grinned, “Lucy hasn’t mentioned you once, by the way.”

“You’re a _fucking_ monster.” He hissed as she laughed.

She leaned against the railing of the elevator and stared out the glass walls at the glorious city skyline, “Why do you want to come back so badly, anyway? I thought you were planning on settling down in the States for good.”

“Things changed, I realized I missed home, I missed being around people I cared about.” He said quietly.

Her lips turned down at that. She had met Yugyeom during her undergrad. He was a few years younger than her and in a completely different faculty. Somehow they ended up at the same party and even more bizarre, they both ended up drunk as hell, sitting in the grass swapping alien conspiracy stories until he passed out and she had to drag him up two flights of stairs by the ankle.

Some would say they became friends that day.

“People you care about? Yuggie, what about h—”

“Anyways, I’ll be back in a month, loud and more annoying than ever, spoiling your daughter so much that she forgets about you. Get ready, I’m going to ruin your life.” 

\-----

Heiran strolled onto her floor in a good mood and planned on inviting Eun to lunch to discuss her future when she noticed her office door.

“Why is my door open? I thought I told you no one is allowed in there when I’m not around.” She said with a frown.

Eun’s voice was disturbingly soft, “I know, I’m sorry.”

She looked over at the now ashen-faced girl, “Eun? Is everything alright? You look sick.”

Her eyes were wide as she shook her head, “I told him that he wasn’t allowed in because he didn’t have an appointment but he said that you were expecting him and I said that you would’ve told me if you were expecting someone and then he sort of raised his voice and I tried to stop him b-but he was big and looked terrifying a-and—”

”Who is he?” Heiran asked. 

Eun shook her head, “I don’t know. He doesn’t look familiar.” 

“Is he in there now?” Heiran asked, her eyes darting to the door.

Eun nodded, her hands shaking and Heiran frowned at the sight. “Okay, I’ll deal with it. Go for lunch now, I’ll be fine.”

“Are you sure?” Eun whispered, panicked. “He didn’t seem normal.”

Heiran gave her a tense smile, “It’ll be okay, probably just a meeting I forgot to tell you about.”

Eun knew it was a lie, Heiran never forgot meetings, but she took the opportunity to grab her purse and run out of the room. Heiran took a deep breath, bracing herself before taking slow steps towards her office door, gingerly pushing it open with the tips of her fingers.

She stood by the door, narrowing her eyes at her chair which was turned away from her and the tuft of black hair peeking out from behind it. She didn’t have a meeting and she certainly didn’t have it with someone who would dare to sit in her chair.

“Didn’t anyone tell you it’s rude to show up in someone’s office uninvited?” Her words were clear and sharp as she stepped into her office. Her eyes were so focused on her chair that she didn’t notice the other man standing by the corner of her office, watching her with narrowed, practiced, eyes.

The minute her chair turned, it was like every last bit of sanity and composure drained from her body.

“Dad?”

A word she never thought she’d ever have to utter.

A man she never thought she’d ever see again.

“Hi, pumpkin.”

Maybe he wasn’t real, maybe she was so overworked that her mind was conjuring up her worst nightmare.

“No.” She said, as if it would make him vanish before her eyes.

He smiled carefully before sitting up, “I guess after so long, I kind of deserved that.”

She felt her files slip out of her hands, “No.”

He stood slowly, “I wish it was under better circumstances.”

This was actually happening.

“Why are you here?” She hissed; her steps wobbly. She wore heels every day of her life and now it felt like she was too high up, teetering over her soul, “After 15 _fucking_ years why the hell are you here?”

Mark brow soar upwards at her tone. In the tight pencil skirt, draped in designer brands and fancy stilts that could take a man’s eyes out, he didn’t expect so much bite out of her. He watched her shake in rage as she faced her father, his Boss. He didn’t even know he had a daughter until a few days ago.

Never mind that she would look like _that_.

“Pump—”

“Stop.” She growled, closing her eyes, “Just tell me why you’re here and leave.”

“You’ve done well for yourself here. A big fancy corner office, an executive title, a personal fucking assistant. I’m proud of you.”

“A criminal's pride doesn't mean a whole lot to me.” She spat, “I got here because I worked my ass off. Clean, honestly, unlike you.”

His smile was sad and came off more like a grimace and it made her sick. “That’s not necessarily true, pumpkin, it’s actually why I’m here. Something…something happened. Something I’ve done and it affects you. We need to talk about it.”

Her demeanor changed, her face crumbling into a look of utter dread. This was a man who married her mother under false pretenses, had kids with her and then abandoned her to live a life of crime. Good news didn’t follow him around, “What did you do?”

He walked around her table, standing closer to her and it took every ounce of courage for her not to step away. He slowly held out a file that she eyed cautiously. “Take it.”

She flipped it open, her eyes skimming over documents on SmartLogic, “This is one of our biggest clients, I’m in charge of this account. So?”

“That isn’t a real tech start-up.”

Her heart stalled a second as she looked up at him, incredulous, “What are you talking about?”

“That account, the entire business, it’s mine. I own it and it’s not real. It’s a front.” 

“You—what?” Her voice came out in a deadly whisper.

He looked remorseful as if that would make her feel better, “It’s me. I started that account to clean our money. You would invest legal money in us that we would use to run our business and then we’d pay you back in dirty money that you would send to the bank and filter through their system.”

“That’s not possible. You’re lying. The bank would’ve caught it, our team would’ve caught it. Hell, I’ve known the co-owner for years, I just came from meeting her. I’ve spoken to her clients, toured her offices.” She said, shaking her head. She would never let such a huge mistake fall through the cracks. She was good at her job and had an entire team that was trained to sniff out frauds.

Her father shook his head, “She works for me, she rented out fake office spaces and faked customer accounts, one of our guys created the fake software. And the bank wouldn’t ever catch on. The money isn’t dirty because it’s stolen from regular citizens. It’s dirty because it’s stolen from other gangs or used to purchase illegal goods.”

“I—what?” She felt her vision blur and her skin prick with sweat.

He nodded, as if he understood her shock, “We orchestrated the entire thing to get an in with your company to clean money without other gangs knowing.”

“You…you used me. You used me to help you get away with actual crimes.” She breathed, shock running through her system so quickly that it numbed her. She lived her life religiously by the book. Having a crime lord as a father changes you; she paid her taxes on time, never accepted cash under the table even for her temp jobs, hell, she never even got a ticket. She may have sold a lie or two to benefit the company, but she never broke the law.

How do you go from that to aiding in the laundering of illegal funds?

He looked down, almost in shame, “I have no excuse, pumpkin, I was greedy, and I saw you and your company and knew it was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.”

“How resourceful.” Her barb came out weaker than she wanted, she was trying so hard not to let her knees hit the floor. This was too much and the information was drowning her, none of this felt real, this was a movie. A sick joke. Anything but the truth. “After mom died, some random aunt that I never met before had to take me in. I had to work 3 jobs because she didn’t have enough money to take care of me. I had to stay up all night, every night, so my grades were good enough to get me a scholarship to university. I took loan after loan to get me through two degrees and then spent 5 years paying them off. You could’ve set me up for life with petty change, instead, you abandoned me when I needed you and then used me when it was beneficial to you? You’re a monster.”

He took the beatings that her words gave him without flinching, “It gets worse.”

“Fucking hell.” She breathed out, turning away to rough her hand through her hair. Her heart was pounding so hard that she swore it was going to explode. A cold sweat rushed through her system and suddenly the numbness was replaced with panic, anxiety, and hysteria.

No matter what the truth was, in the eye of the law, she was a criminal.

She had a little girl; how could she be a parent and a criminal? Her father certainly didn’t balance the two well.

“What is it?” She whispered.

Her father stepped towards her and this time she stepped back, but her heel slipped. She tumbled to the ground but the pain ringing through her body barely registered. Her father reached for her, concern in his eyes and she looked away, disgusted, before forcing herself up on her own.

That’s how she always did things: on her own.

She wasn’t going to change that now.

“Are you alright?” He murmured.

She turned away and her eyes met with the tattooed man standing in the corner. She didn’t even notice him being there and quite frankly, she couldn’t bother being shocked by another presence. His face was hard to read but it infuriated her that someone she didn’t know was witnessing her breakdown. Like a perverse spectator.

“Just fucking tell me.” She warbled.

Her father sighed behind her, “Something must’ve gone wrong and one of the gangs we work with was given money that wasn’t properly cleaned through your system. We aren’t sure how it happened, but regardless, the dirty money led the police to one of their men and he’s been arrested. Now that gang is out for blood and they’re taking down everyone associated. That includes members of my team and—”

“Me.” She breathed out, “They think I helped you screw them over.”

“No.” Her father shook his head, “They think you run their entire account and did this all yourself.”

She grit her teeth as her body trembled in a pent up rage, “Why on earth would they think that?”

“Because the only way for us to gain their trust was to make them believe that the person from this firm was one of ours.” He explained it like it was the most rational concept ever.

“You let me take the fall?” She looked at him dubiously, “And now they what? Want me to repay them with clean money? Help get their guy out of prison?”

“They want you dead.” Her father said solemnly, “This gang escalates. They’re pissed and they want everyone to know they aren’t to be messed with. They’re not eye for an eye. They want an eye for a life.

“Oh god,” She whispered, horrified. She could feel tears burn the back of her eyes. “They want to kill me? Over this?” 

Her mind jumped to Lucy, the tiny angel who would be caught up in the crossfire as if she hadn’t lived through enough pain at her young age already. All of this would affect her, just because of her dad. Her dad that never even met Lucy. 

The thought of her little girl sent a flush of new red-hot rage through her.

“I swear, I never meant for this to happen.” He said softly, and she broke. 

With lightning speed, she lifted a paperweight off her shelf and wound her arm back, ready to throw it straight at him so that the ceramic would shatter against his face and pierce his flesh, cracking his skull, when a slow _click_ made her freeze. She turned slowly, her eyes widening as she stared down the barrel of a gun.

That was a sight she wasn’t used to.

Her eyes trailed down the tattooed hand that gripped the pistol before running up his arm and landing on his face. He stared at her like he was daring her to move, there was no condescending smile or animalistic scowl, his face was void of any emotion except for the cold-blooded look in his eye.

A look that said the minute she threw the paperweight, he wouldn’t hesitate to kill her without remorse.

And suddenly, she was pissed.

“What are you going to do? Shoot me? You’re going to kill daddy’s little princess?” She hissed, venom slurring her words. “Save that other gang from going through the trouble, I guess.”

The corner of his lip twitched, like a snarl threatening to appear but he chose to stay silent, only adjusting the grip on the gun. They stood like that for what felt like 10 minutes until her father spoke up, “That’s enough, Mark.”

His eyes darted over her shoulder before he slowly lowered the gun and tucked it into the waistband of his jeans, stepping away. Heiran scoffed, turning away from him to face her father. “How dare you. You abandoned me for 15 fucking years, but you had the nerve to use me to make you more money and put my entire life on the line with it. Jeopardizing everything I worked for, everything I’ve sacrificed, everything I earned and then have one of your lapdogs threaten to kill _me_ to save _you_. Rot in hell.”

“I wanted to be there for you, I ju—”

“Then where were you?!” She screamed, her voice betraying when it cracked, she whipped the paperweight at him, but he just sidestepped it. It bounced off her desk, chipping the expensive glossy wood and landed in front of the gun man’s feet.

“Where were you when mom had to raise her children alone? Where were you when she worked so many jobs that she barely saw us? Where were you when she was in the hospital because she relapsed and none of us could afford her chemotherapy? Where were you when I had to attend 3 funerals in one year? Where the fuck were you!?” She roared. The anger was something she had never felt so strongly before, her voice sounded animalistic to her ears but there was no other way she could convey the churning inside her that didn’t involve her hands wrapped around her father’s neck.

“I can’t…I can’t make up for what I’ve done and what I’ve put you through. I can only make sure nothing happens to you now.” He said calmly despite her wrath.

She laughed, it sounded empty and shrill to her, “What makes you think you have the right to protect me now? You never did it before. You don’t get to put me in danger and act like a hero trying to protect me.”

“I’m not trying to be a hero. I’m trying to make sure you have the resources to stay safe because you have never been up against people like this before.” He said calmly.

This couldn’t be real, “Can’t you just tell them the truth? That I was uninvolved?”

“They’ll think we’re covering for you, or worse, they’ll know you’re my daughter and gun after you harder trying to make it personal.”

“Fuck you.” Was all she could manage. How could they use her relation to him against her when they didn’t even _have_ a relationship? “Fuck you for doing this to me. You haven’t changed at all. The same power-hungry monster that never cared about his family and just used them for your own means.”

He sighed again and it took everything inside her not to throttle him. “I know you’re furious. You have every right to be but just listen, Mark is one of my best men. I trust him implicitly; he has protected me on multiple occasions, saved my life many times and knows the gang you’re facing better than anyone. He knows how they think; he knows how they’ll try to come after you. He can help you.”

“Who’s Mark?” She asked incredulously as if that was the most pressing matter at hand.

Her father turned to look at the man who had been silently watching their entire exchange, like a ghost. She followed his gaze until it landed on him and he looked over at her, giving her a curt nod that caused her to laugh loudly.

“Him? The guy who nearly blew my brains out? I’m supposed to trust him with my life?”

“If anything, it shows you how fast he is, how he moves before anything can happen to me. He will do that…for you. He’s yours.”

She looked over at Mark again, surveying the sharp, feline features that were void of any care, his stance, and the tattoos covering the backs of his hands. All hers, apparently.

Yet he was nothing but a stranger.

“I’ve taken care of myself and my family on my own all this time. I’m not changing that now.” She muttered as she stared pointedly at Mark. “Might be a new concept to you but I look after my own. I don’t care if a million people are coming for me. I’ve survived worse. I survived you.”

He looked away for a moment, if he was human she imagined he’d be pained but she was sure he wasn’t capable of vulnerable emotion.

“Again, you’ve never needed to take care of them against someone like DS and his people. They show no mercy, they are cruel and violent. Mark knows what he’s doing.” Her father reiterated after composing himself. 

“Try me.” She turned back to face him, poison on her tongue and fire in her eyes, “Leave. Now. And never show your face in front of me again.”

Her father watched her, his gaze was weighted and torturous before he slipped his hands into the pockets of his pinstripe suit, “I’ll leave, but Mark will stay. You can hate me, but you need him around to stay safe. You’re my daughter.”

He was halfway out the door when her words rang out through the room, making him pause.

“I hate you. I always have.”

She turned away from him and let him walk out without another word. Tears filled her eyes as she moved to her desk, each step feeling like she was wading through a pool made of tar. She barely acknowledged Mark at first and just pulled the bottom drawer of her desk open, lifting a bottle of expensive vodka and a crystal glass out.

She was never one for day drinking, but she sure as hell fucking deserved it.

Her pour was messy, splashing onto the table but she didn’t care. She lifted the glass and took a sip, the gasoline-burning down her throat as she stared at Mark over the lip of the cup. He stared back, almost like a dare, before she set the glass down with a loud slam.

“I hope it’s clear that I don’t trust you.” She growled. “And I surely don’t need you around to protect me.”

He just tilted his head at her, not speaking and it pissed her off. She didn’t know this man and he had the nerve to judge her? “Leave, go crawl into the sewer that my dad built a fucking empire on. I don’t need you.”

Mark blinked, his eyes lazily scanning her office before they landed on the collection of photos of her and Lucy that adorned her desk. She tensed when she noticed where his attention went, “If you do anything to her, I will hunt you down and rip your throat out with my own hands.”

His lips twitched before he bent down and picked up her paperweight before sauntering over to her desk and setting it down next to the pictures of Lucy. Heiran was rock solid, tracking his every movement like prey waiting for the predator to go for the kill.

He reached into the inner pocket of his leather jacket before setting his card on her table and her mind dumbly wondered why a member of a gang would ever need a business card. He tapped it twice with two of his fingers, the letters G O facing her before she looked up at him. He smirked, something of a challenge before he spoke for the first time. His voice low but his tone light.

“Call me if you change your mind, duchess.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ughhh we love a good meet-danger. Chemistry hours are WIDE OPENNNNN! I NEED TO KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS!
> 
> Comment and Upvote <3333
> 
> -loviet


	3. Third

Her phone was blowing up and her email was stacked with urgent unread messages but Heiran didn’t care. She was too busy sitting in middle of her floor surrounded by every document related to SmartLogic she could find. There was a frantic energy radiating off of her as her hands shook; every number, every correspondence, every funding request _still_ looked completely normal even after she knew what she did about her father’s involvement.

They covered every angle so that someone like her, someone who worked her undergrad in banking and could spot a fraudster from a mile away couldn’t catch on. Her hands fell limply on her lap as an invoice slipped through her fingers.

Millions.

She had helped her father clean tens of millions of dollars that were used to commit a countless number of horrendous crimes and she had no clue the entire time.

A hysteric lump grew in her throat.

No judge would ever believe that defense.

Her breathing was becoming erratic as she leaned forward, pressing her forehead against her plush carpeting. She couldn’t go to jail, she wouldn’t last, Lucy would have to be raised by strangers who didn’t actually love and care for her.

Tears filled her eyes at the sheer absurdity of the entire situation. A murderous psychopath was out for bloody revenge because they thought she had set them up to get caught by the police. It was gut-wrenching, to be used like that.

It wasn’t fair that someone who abandoned her, someone who left her and her family to fend for themselves had the right to benefit off of the fact that they shared the same DNA.

Spending her life fighting to be powerful, to no longer feel abandoned and worthless, only to be thrown back to where she desperately didn’t want to be: cursing her father for being alive.

“Heiran, the Samsung rep just called and said you missed their Skype call. Wh—”

Heiran lifted her head and looked at Eun who was standing by the door, staring at the landfill that had become her office with wide eyes. “What is going on? Did something happen? Oh my god, did those men do this?”

She made quick work of wiping the tears off her face before standing, trying not to wobble on her heels. Clearing her throat, she gathered her belongings and walked to her door. 

She needed to get out of here. Suddenly the Jackson Pollack paintings hanging off her wall we’re making her sick. Paint recklessly splattered felt like too close to home right now.

“Clear the rest of my schedule, I’m going home, I’ll clean this later, and don’t let anyone in.”

“I-I promise. I’m so sorry about earlier, I—”

Heiran glanced at Eun briefly before passing her, “It’s not your fault, Eun.”

It was hers.

Her fault for being her father’s daughter.

\-----

Mark strolled into a small record shop he found tucked away between artisanal coffee shops and high-end boutiques, after being kicked out of Heiran’s office. It was a shock that he found it at all on such a polished street.

It reminded him a lot of the woman he just came from meeting, deep inside all the prim and proper shell was a connection to dirty past.

You don’t outgrow blood ties.

He remembered sitting in his Boss’s office for hours after the others had left, going over every detail of his new assignment.

His daughter.

And what a daughter indeed.

Smiling dryly to himself, he stepped into the shop that smelled like tobacco and nodded at the teenage cashier who just snapped her gum and rolled her eyes before going back to flipping through her magazine.

Ah, the joys of youth.

He didn’t know why he liked record shops, he didn’t listen to records, he was in the digital age like everyone else, but there was something fascinating about old records that have passed through the hands of so many people.

They were relics, like finding a floppy disk. 

Using his fingers to thumb through the shelves of music, he let his eyes scan them half-heartedly. The other half of his mind was with the duchess in a silk shirt, he wondered what she was doing now, if she was in mid-meltdown or on the way to the police station to turn herself in.

She seemed like the righteous type.

Which was more of a paradox than he thought it would be. A pretty rich girl with a young daughter, the mouth of a sailor, a moral compass and legs that a better man would kill for. A perfect package on the outside and the cruel DNA of her father in the inside.

His eyes skimmed the cover of an old Beatles records before a buzzing in his pocket distracted him. 

He glanced at his phone, blinking at the unfamiliar number before picking up.

“Yeah.”

\-----

You know when you learn about something new for the first time and then all of a sudden you see it everywhere you go? Like, was this all a coincidence or did it always exist but you just never noticed any of it before until you were told? 

Like, did cars always follow behind you for long stretches of time or did you only notice after you learned that dangerous people wanted you dead?

That was what Heiran thought when she glanced at over her shoulder and noticed a navy-blue jeep driving behind her car. Her hands started shaking as her grip on the steering wheel tightened as she drove her usual route home. How long had it been following her?

Maybe it was someone from DS tailing her. Maybe they were going to run her off the road. Maybe they had a gun.

“You’re being paranoid.” She muttered to herself as she flipped on her indicator and turned onto a random road. She glanced at the rear-view mirror and did a double-take when the same jeep turned the corner, driving closer to her.

She pursed her lips as her heart raced, “What the hell…”

Pressing her foot down on the gas, she drove faster towards another turn and this time, without turning on her signal, she swung around the corner, repeatedly glancing back over her shoulder.

The jeep turned the corner too.

And it was moving faster.

Panic crawled up her throat and her heart began to pound as the jeep came up behind her and peeled into the opposite lane. It was driving parallel to her and she had no way to moving out of their sights.

She just wanted to get home and process the bomb that was dropped on her. Was that too much to ask for? 

But right before she accepted death, the jeep took a sudden turn and pulled up to a house off the side of the street. She slammed on her brakes and stared, as the doors swung open and a group of teenage boys jumped out, yelling and laughing at each other with boxes of food in their hands. 

She let out a breath and felt every muscle soften as the tension evaporated out of her body and was replaced with a feeling of foolishness. She rested her head against the steering wheel, “I can’t do this. I can’t keep doing this.”

She sat like that for a moment, trying to collect her composure. She was being silly and paranoid. This wasn’t an action movie, there wasn’t going to be a dramatic car chase in the middle of the city. 

But peace was never meant to last long.

Heiran lifted her head when she caught movement to her right. She looked over and a scream lodged in her throat when she stared down a barrel of a gun for the second time that day. The man was on a motorcycle on the opposite side of the street with a helmet covering his entire head and his hand outstretched with a gun pointed directly at her.

She was so preoccupied with the jeep that she didn’t notice the motorcycle.

Without thinking, she slammed her foot against the gas pedal and skidded away, speeding down the street while constantly glancing at the rear-view mirror. A scared whimper escaped her lips as she watched the motorcycle rider close in behind her.

She reached out with one hand and dug furiously through her bag until her fingers brushed a thin card while trying to keep her eyes on the road. Heiran pulled out Mark’s business card and glanced at it with a moment of hesitation until she noticed the motorcycle get even closer.

Heiran jabbed her finger against the touch screen display on her dashboard; trying to drive in a straight line while dialling his number at the same time. She wasn’t sure how long it rang for, but it felt like centuries passed until he finally picked up.

His voice came out crisp and bored, “Yeah.”

“M-Mark.” Her voice, on the other hand, came out too high and shaky even for herself, but she couldn’t find it in her to care. The second she hits a red light, that motorcycle was going to catch up to her and she’d have much bigger problems.

There was a pause before he spoke again, “Who is this?”

“Fuck are you kidding me?” She screamed, “You just pointed a gun at me hours ago and you have the nerve to ask me who I am?”

Another beat of silence passed, “I didn’t think you’d call so soon, duchess.”

“Shut up.” She hissed, her tears blurring her vision, “Shut up, and help me.”

“Why should I?” He muttered.

A growled escaped her lips, “Because it’s your damn job.”

“Wait, what’s going on?” His tone shifted; it was harder, darker.

She glanced at the mirror again, seeing him close in, “Someone on a motorcycle just tried to shoot me and they’re following me, and I don’t know what to do.”

“Shit.” He hissed. She could hear a door slam on the other end and prayed he was already in his car, “Where are you?”

She looked at a street sign as she blew through a stop sign. There goes her spotless driving record, “I just passed 18th, going south.”

“I’m close.” His voice was basically a quiet snarl.

Her heavy breathing was making her lightheaded, “What do I do until you get here?”

“Avoid small roads, don’t stop at red lights.” He ordered.

She scoffed, “Instead of getting shot, I should just get T-Boned. Great.”

“I don’t know about you but a car accident sounds a whole lot better than getting your brains blown out.” Mark said calmly.

“Screw you. I wouldn’t have to choose if it wasn’t for your kingpin.” She looked back at the motorcycle and felt her gut churn, “He’s getting closer.”

“So am I.” He ground out.

She felt her breathing shallow out when she spotted a stoplight in the distance. She pressed her foot down on the gas, hoping to make it while it’s green but to her horror and absolute shit luck, it flashed yellow.

“Mark, there’s a stoplight and it’s turning red.” She whispered.

It angered her beyond reprieve how calm he sounded despite her having her life flash before her eyes, “You know what to do, duchess.” 

“Are you insane? It’s a busy road.” She countered.

He said nothing in response, and it made her panic, “Mark.”

“Just do it.” He murmured.

Taking a deep breath, she watched the speed barometer go up before gliding through the red light, and leaving a symphony of angry honks and even angrier shouting in her wake.

She let out her breath, “Oh my god.”

“Feels good breaking rules, doesn’t it, duchess?” She could her the smarmy smirk bleed through the phone.

Her jaw tensed as she made her way on to a quieter street. But of course, it wasn’t as quiet with a motorcycle gunning closely behind her, “Maybe for bottom-feeders like you, not me. Are you stopping for coffee? What the hell is taking you so long?”

“Patience, duchess.”

Her eyes tracked the motorcyclist that had gained incredible ground on her and felt her blood run cold when she watched him raise his gun, “Mark!”

She was met with no response and she quickly looked over at the screen to make sure the call didn’t cut off. “Answer me you little bit—”

Her words curled into a scream as she ran another red light just as a sleek black car sped out from her left, barely missing her, but as a result, acted as a blockade between her and the motorcyclist. Her eyes widened as she watched the car come to a halt and gunfire snap out towards her assailant.

She eased her foot off the gas but kept the car on a steady roll while watching as the motorcyclist spun out trying to avoid the bullets before firing off some of his own. The street was filled with nothing but the sound of gunfire before he turned around on one wheel and sped away.

Heiran could feel her heart rate slow and her adrenaline rush coming down from its high as she continued driving away. It took a moment before she realized he was still on the line, “Was that…was that you?”

“Yeah.” He said shortly, his tone stiff. Silence filled her car as her mind scrambled over itself until he spoke again. “Did you almost call me a ‘bitch’ before?”

“Apparently being gunned down in the middle of the street tends to bring out some cursing in me.” She barked out.

He snorted, “I think it takes a lot less for you to start cursing, but I’m into it. Now, go straight home, I’m trying to follow this guy, but I’ll come around after.”

She narrowed her eyes and glanced back, relieved that no one was behind her, “You’re…wait, no you’re _not_ coming to my house.”

He laughed lowly, almost like a buzzing from his chest, “Oh, duchess, you called me, which means you changed your mind. According to your father and my boss, I’m all yours now.”

And then he had the audacity to hang up.

\-----

When she pulled up to her garage, she nearly ran the door over trying to burrow her way into the safety of her house. She flew out of her car, her knees shaking as she pressed the keycode to let herself in. She slammed the door shut, locking it with one hand before crumpling to the floor.

She braced her hands against the tiles and squeezed her eyes shut so tightly that it sent a tingling feeling through her brain.

Lucy.

Gasping, she unzipped her leather Gucci bag and dumped the contents on the floor before scrambling for her phone. She dialed Lucy’s driver and waited until he picked up.

“Ma’am?”

“When you pick up Lucy today, take her out for ice cream.” She said hastily.

He whistled lowly, “’Ice cream on a weeknight? Are you sure ma’am?”

“Yes.” Her tone was cold and if she wasn’t about to let her father’s thug inside her house, she would’ve felt bad, “Take her for ice cream and then drive her around the block until I say so. Take her to the park or something.”

“Is everything alright?”

“Yes. Just do it, please.”

She hung up before he could ask anything else and tossed her phone to the side before pressing her hands to her eyes. She needed to protect Lucy, no matter what happens, she needed to make sure that she'd be okay. Even if that meant her mother wpuld end up in jail for a crime she didn't commit. Her heart curled down to her gut at the thought of how drastically her life was ripped away from her and put in the hands of the one man she hated the most. 

All in the span of one meeting. 

A distant honk brought her to reality as she struggled to push herself up onto the points of her heels and walk to the front door.

The clicking of her heels sounded so much like the cocking of a gun that halfway through, she kicked her stilettos off and padded to the door.

She felt like she was wading through a dream.

The last time she was at her house, she was blissfully stressed about budget meetings, spending time with Lucy and debating whether to go shopping this weekend, she had wanted a new pair of shoes.

Small problems.

Now her problems involved, guns, jail time and her father.

She pulled back the curtains by the door and stared out beyond the tall brass gates closing off her house from the rest of the world. Mark’s black car was waiting, and he must’ve spotted her by the window because he flashed his lights at her twice.

Going against all instincts, she sighed and clicked the button by her alarm system that slowly opened the gates. She watched him with a frown as he parked and killed the engine. He stepped out of the car and she took that moment to inspect the man that she was expected to trust to keep her safe. He was tall and his legs were long, they moved quickly and purposefully, never lingering anywhere too long.

He reminded her of a ghost, no roots, ungrounded, floating by fast enough that you can only spot him from the side of your eye. 

And if you look him in the eye for too long, he’ll swallow your soul.

He was draped in the same black outfit from the morning, a snug leather jacket on top with his wave of silver hair pushed off his forehead.

How does someone like that work with someone like her father?

Mark’s eyes grazed over her face, but he stayed impassive as he walked up her porch. She opened the door before he could reach for the doorbell, though he didn’t seem like the type to use it.

When he stepped into her house, his threatening presence filling up her brightly lit house, she wished she could push him back outside and lock her doors. The minute he stood before her, she knew that wherever this was going to go, it would end in ashes, blood and irreparable pain. 

Because he was danger and a curse.

And she was a dragon hiding gold.

\-----

Her house was exactly what he thought it’d look like. High ceilings, elaborate artwork, and expensive furniture. Seemed awfully large for someone on her own. The entire foyer smelled like vanilla and it was so sweet that he nearly gagged.

Instead, he looked down at her as he stepped closer, it was easier to see her features without his gun in the way. She was pretty for someone who called him a bitch.

She looked expensive, that was for sure.

His eyes landed over her shoulder where her heels from earlier were stranded in her hallway. His lips quirked up, amused, that someone who seemed so put together, cracked at the mere presence of his Boss.

What a shame though, he liked the way those stilts made her legs look.

“How was your day?” He asked in mocking sweetness.

She snarled at him before storming away, “Did you catch the guy?”

He trailed behind her, slipping his hands in his pockets while trying not to admire the things she could do with a pencil skirt, “No.”

She froze mid-step and turned to look at him, aghast. “No? Someone tried to shoot me, and you let him get away?”

“I didn’t _let_ him get away.” He hissed, his brow twitching, “I had to let him put distance between you or he’d keep shooting. Not to mention a motorcycle is a bit more agile in traffic than a car.”

She narrowed her eyes and titled her head up at him, “I thought you were supposed to be the best.”

“I am.” He muttered, stepping towards her so that his glare could hang over her, “Don’t push me, duchess.”

Her jaw tensed and it brought him monumental joy to know that she hated the name but didn’t want him to know. She put her hands against her hips with a frown, “You don’t scare me. The men trying to kill me? Sure. You? Not so much.”

“That’s a mistake, duchess.” He mused with a tilt of his head.

She huffed and turned stalking into her kitchen. “Do you understand the gravity of this entire situation? Someone is trying to kill me, someone with apparently a lot of resources, a lack of conscious.”

“I’m good at my job and have handled a lot worse, I’m not too concerned.” He said cavalierly.

She scoffed, “God, if I didn’t need your help, I wouldn’t want anything to do with someone like you.”

“You think I’m giddy about this? I have actual responsibilities to take care of that don’t involve me babysitting a grown adult. Yet here I am.” He fired back.

Her body tensed, “Don’t act all high and mighty. You’re here because your boss screwed up, this is the least you could do.”

She could tell that he was biting back whatever he wanted to say but it didn’t bother her, instead, he pivoted, “What happened today is going to happen often. Now that they know I’m around, they’re going to get creative. I’ll need to keep a close eye on you and the people you are in contact with.”

“Fine.” She grumbled, reaching for a glass to fill with water. As she poured, his eyes skated over the kitchen, the fine marble counter-tops, the state-of-the-art equipment that almost looked unused and the fridge where various drawings, pictures and colourful magnets were stuck on.

It stood out like a sore thumb.

He stared at one of the pictures tacked on.

“What about…” He paused for a moment, sorting out his words before speaking, “What about the small one?”

She looked confused for a moment, “Small on—oh.”

He watched her face melt into what he could assume was a look of softness and pure concern, “You mean Lucy?”

He shrugged, “If that’s her name.”

“I don’t know what rules my father has given you, but you are not just looking out for me, you’re looking out for Lucy too now. We’re a packaged deal and I don’t know if they’ll try using her to get to me.”

His lips quirked, “You’re thinking like a real gunslinger.”

“I’m being serious.” She said with a frown.

He rolled his eyes, “Yeah, fine, but I’m ordered to be around you nearly 24/7. I can get someone to do rounds at her pre-school or kindergarten or whatever the fuck she’s in, but I’m not sitting in her class watching her draw or some shit.”

She waited a beat for him to ask more about Lucy, most people did. They wanted to know if the father was in the picture. _He wasn’t_. If she was a single mother. _She was._ If it was hard. _Sometimes_. If she was doing okay. _Sure._

But it never came.

He just stared back at her and suddenly her mind was clicking pieces into place. Mark wasn’t a friend to banter with, an acquaintance to bond with, a relative to share polite smiles with or a stranger to ignore.

He was an employee.

She knew how to deal with employees.

“Then we need to set ground rules.” She ordered.

He crossed his arms over his chest, his sleeves riding up to expose his tattoos that continued from the backs of his hands and disappearing into the depths of his shirt, “I don’t like rules.”

“Suck it up.”

His lips parted, a little stunned before sheer amusement painted across his face. It was interesting being around someone who knew what business he was in but not the full extent of terror he was capable of. She had no clue how dangerous he was. How he could kill her, dispose of her body and leave her kitchen spotless before the little thing came home from school.

Interesting.

“Rule 1, Lucy doesn’t see any of your weapons or whatever else you carry with you. That includes all general violence.” She said, counting off a finger, “Rule 2, don’t swear in front of her.”

He cocked his head at that one, “I feel like that should be a rule for you.”

“Rule 3,” She said with a glare, “No one at work knows what you’re doing. We’ll tell them that you’re…you’re my personal assistant.”

Now he was pissed.

“Don’t you already have one? The mousy girl with the glasses.” He snarked.

She gave him a look, “Yeah well, she’s only for work-related tasks. You’ll be…for personal errands.”

“Fuck off.” He hissed under his breath but loud enough for her to hear.

It almost made her smile victoriously, “Rule 4, you can’t just show up at my house whenever you want, you need to call ahead.”

“No promises. I can’t predict every reason I’ll need to be here.” He grumbled.

She sighed, “Fine. Rule 5, you can’t interfere in my life if it has nothing to with that other gang or mine and Lucy’s safety.”

“What? You think I’m going to stop you from boring meetings or your riveting personal life with corporate douches? Don’t worry, duchess, I couldn’t give a bigger shit.”

She rolled her eyes, “That’s all of my rules for now. I’ll let you know if I have any other.”

“How kind. My turn.” He said with a grin, “Rule 1, you do what I say.”

She laughed loudly, nearly keeling over. Wow, it was nice to finally laugh, “Good one.”

Suddenly he was in her face and had her pushed up against the counter, his arms caging her in. She leaned back as far as she could and he realized that _she_ smelled a lot like vanilla, not her house, “This isn’t funny. When I tell you to run a red light, you do it. Don’t ask questions.”

“I could’ve died.” She shot back, remembering the car that braked right before they could’ve crashed into her.

His jaw tightened, “But you didn’t because you ran it. When I tell you to do something to keep you and your kid safe, do it.”

“Okay.” She relented quietly, looking away in frustration. Lucy would always be her weak spot.

He stepped back and surveyed the house, “Rule 2, I’m setting up cameras and alarms, better than the shit your currently have. Rule 3, don’t go anywhere without telling me first. I don’t need to spend every hour monitoring your GPS and cameras, it’d be easier if you just told me.”

She turned, nodding numbly while opening the fridge. She couldn’t believe this was her life now, under the watch of a prison warden.

Might as well get used to it now. 

“Rule 4, you need to cut ties with SmartLogic before your Samsung people start digging.”

“No shit.” She muttered. “Your little gang has completely fucked my entire merger strategy, by the way.”

He grinned, “You’re smart. 2 degrees in the Ivy Leagues, you’ll figure it out.”

“This might make you smile, but can you at least try to think about how I feel right now? Jeopardizing my entire career, having to jump through hoops to cover up my father’s mistakes that he implicated me in, all while being forced to trust people I don’t know while being hunted by people my father ticked off. This isn’t fair. I didn’t ask for this. I lived my life the exact opposite way he has and I did that on purpose.” She whispered. “I didn’t do anything wrong and now I’m being punished.”

Mark stared at her back as she hung her head into her fridge, “Yeah. Your shit is fucked. Oh well.”

She scoffed, beyond exhausted to get offended, “You’re an ass.”

“What are you going to do? Just sit around and feel sorry for yourself? Go ahead, but that won’t make this better. It definitely won’t keep you safe. You might actually have a chance to get out of this mess completely scot-free…but if you’re already giving up, fine by me, one less thing for me to deal with.” He said.

She fell silent and Mark waited for a couple of minutes to pass before taking it as agreement, “Rule 5, you let me do whatever I need to in order to make sure you two don’t die.”

Her skin prickled at the underlying implication as she stared at the fridge stocked with food that she rarely had time to eat, “What does that mean?”

“You know what it means, duchess.” He said calmly, “It means that I don’t shoot to injure or scare. I shoot to ki—.”

“Listen, I-I don’t want to know how you get things done, or what you need to do to keep us safe, but there’s one thing I need to know you’ll do. A sixth rule.”

He tipped his head upward as a silent signal to continue.

“If you’re ever faced with the choice between saving me or Lucy, you _always_ choose her. No matter what.”

  


  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> UMMMM do we stan or do we stan?
> 
> Comment and Upvote <3333
> 
> -loviet


	4. Fourth

“Tell me everything!” 

Mark glanced over at Jinyoung who was seated on his couch with his laptop as he walked through his door. Sometimes he really regretted giving his best friend a key. Jinyoung always used the excuse that Mark’s place was bigger, nicer, and quieter but Mark was pretty sure he was just nosy and needed to keep up to date on his personal life. 

He was tired and his new tattoo was still sore, so all he wanted to do was fall asleep, for the love of all that was evil in the world, that was all he was asking for.

He shucked his leather jacket off and hung it up before walking to the kitchen, rolling his shoulder, “Everything about what?”

Jinyoung scoffed before setting his laptop aside and running over to his friend who was rummaging through his fridge, “You just spent hours with the youngest and most successful financier in this city. What was she like? What industries is she projecting will experience the largest growth? Are the rumors true about the Samsung merger? Does she think they’ll be any issues with the stock once it’s publicly announced?”

“How can you say so much, so quickly?” Mark muttered, tipping a bottle of cold water down his throat.

“I can’t believe all this time that fake SmartLogic software I made was for a company that _she_ was investing in. This is insane. It’s basically like we’re business partners, now.” Jinyoung gushed.

Mark glanced at the stars glittering in Jinyoung’s eyes before furrowing his brows, “You _do_ remember that I was there to make sure no one kills her, right? People are literally out for her blood.”

“Fine, at least tell me what she’s like. Is she really the Dragon everyone calls her?” Jinyoung asked, brimming with curiosity.

“Dragon?” Mark asked incredulously. The only information he was given on her was what he learned during the course of the meeting with her and the Boss. “They call her that?” 

Jinyoung looked appalled at his lack of knowledge, “It’s her nickname because she’s so intimidating and relentless when it comes to her work. How do you get to spent time with her when you know so little?”

Mark nodded, absorbing the information, and leaving out his snarky jabs. Dragon seemed fitting for the little that he saw of her. “Well, she swears a lot.”

“Unexpected, but okay.” Jinyoung said. At this point, he was willing to take any crumbs he could get about _the_ Seo Heiran.

"Wears expensive-looking clothes." Mark tilted his head at his friend, “And did _you_ know she has a daughter?”

Jinyoung’s eyes widened, now this was bigger than a crumb, “No shit, really? I had no clue, but then again no one cares about the personal life of businesswoman. The dad in the picture?”

He shook his head, the thought definitely crossed his mind a few times when he was around her, “Not that I can tell. I was going to ask you if there was someone in her life that could be a problem. Nosy, jealous boyfriends are difficult to deal with.”

“It’s hilarious that you think her hypothetical boyfriend would be jealous of _you_ , but no, she’s good at guarding her private life, you know, hence not knowing about her kid. She’s been single as far back as I can remember, it’s been the topic of a lot of feminist debates and I ha—”

Mark gave him a look that shut him up, “Yes or no answers only.”

”You’re so boring.” Jinyoung pouted, “No, okay? No boyfriend.”

Mark's gaze fell past Jinyoung’s shoulder as he sunk in deep thought. It was almost unbelievable that someone like her managed to be a parent and a successful businesswoman without any help. He wondered what that was like, to have even one parent be a present and healthy guardian in your life.

She didn’t have a whole lot of that apparently and now her kid might not either. 

All because of them. Huh. 

“Oh god, this means you have to spend time with a kid.” Jinyoung snickered.

Mark cut him a glare, “She actually had the balls to tell me that I’m not allowed to have my ‘weapons’ out in front of the child. As if I’m not saving their asses with those weapons.”

“See if Jackson can childproof your gun. Maybe your gun can shoot jellybeans.” Jinyoung joked before shaking his head, impressed. “But damn, she’s vicious to be barking orders at you. She’s my idol.”

Mark made a face before turning away, muttering under his breath, “Yeah, never knew you could be so vicious in 6-inch heels.”

“Oh, fuck, I totally forgot about her heels,” Jinyoung said, slapping himself on the forehead.

Mark was dubious, “She’s known for them?”

“She has a notorious love for them, and has a huge collection, apparently,” Jinyoung stated factually.

That was some good news. She had more which meant she was going to wear them often.

“Someone from DS came after her today,” Mark informed.

“Already? Fuck.” Jinyoung muttered, “Do you know who?”

Mark shook his head, “They were wearing a helmet, and, on a motorcycle, I think a few of them drive those.”

Jinyoung shook his head, “Thank god you were there.”

“She called me, actually, after all the big talk about not needing me,” Mark said quietly. “Thought she’d have to be on the brink of death before admitting she needed my help.” 

Jinyoung smiled slightly, “Impressive, someone whose pride doesn’t get in the way, something you should probably learn. I’m guessing you followed through?”

“That’s the only reason she agreed to let me do my job properly.”

Jinyoung chuckled, “She has a reputation of having a thorough recruiting process.”

“I barely made the cut. Nepotism didn’t work in my favor.” Mark muttered.

“Wow, she hates him that much, huh?” Jinyoung said, his brows raised high.

Mark shook his head in disbelief as he thought back to the scene he witnessed in her office, “She nearly clocked him with a paperweight shaped like an elephant.”

Jinyoung let out a laugh, "Now I _have_ to meet her.”

“Good luck, she hates all of us,” Mark grumbled.

Jinyoung tilted his head, amused at his friend’s growing scowl, “You don’t like her either, do you?”

“She’s demanding, aggressive, she’s going to resist anything I do, I can already tell, and to top it all off, I’m going to have to follow her around while she does boring corporate bullshit and pretend to be her personal assistant. So yeah, not really her biggest fan.”

“Man, I should’ve been assigned to her,” Jinyoung whined. "I would worship the ground her heels walk on."

He snorted. “And do what? HTML code her to safety?”

Jinyoung laughed sarcastically before slipping his hands into his sweater pockets. “You think this plan is actually going to work? It's a big risk. It's rare the Boss does something this drastic and uncertain. She's a huge unpredictable variable and DS are just waiting for an opening.”

Mark leaned his head back and stared up at the ceiling, “If the Boss said it would work, we have to trust him.”

“Yeah, but people aren’t always objective when it comes to their family,” Jinyoung said wistfully.

Mark paused a second too long before speaking. “I wouldn’t know anything about having a family.”

“The world tiniest violin is playing just for you.” Jinyoung snorted.

Mark let the silence suspend over the two of them before Jinyoung spoke, humour dried out from his tone, “Do you think she’d ever forgive him?”

“She really doesn’t like him,” Mark said simply. _Hated_ would probably describe how she felt about him, she made that abundantly clear. Hearing her list out all the things that the Boss put her and her remaining family through surprised him. His Boss was always one that preached about loyalty and how GOT7 was more than just a gang, but family. He was surprised it ended the way that it did.

He was surprised he abandoned one family, in lieu of another.

Jinyoung cocked his head at the half-hearted response, “Did he ever tell you he had a daughter before that meeting?”

Mark turned away, pulling his shirt over his head, saying nothing, but despite silence being the root of his personality, Jinyoung sense this silence to be different than most. This was a silence that was filled with a lot more than noise, “None of us knew.” 

“It’s different, that's for sure.” Mark muttered as he walked into his room.

Jinyoung followed him without hesitation, leaning against the doorframe as Mark disappeared into his closet, “It’s different because you’re his favorite but now you’re just like the rest of us., in the dark.”

Mark stepped out with a glare, a sweater hanging around his neck, doing little to cover the tapestry of ink curved across his skin and taut muscle, “Don’t be a dick. We aren’t in school trying to be teacher's pet.”

“Did you talk to him about it? About her?” He asked.

Mark gave him a bored look, “I don’t ask questions, I just do what I’m told.”

“No wonder you’re the favourite.” Jinyoung snorted.

Mark growled at his friend, his body tensing, “Watch it, Young.”

But Jinyoung didn’t look deterred, “Don’t get all ‘assassin alpha male’ on me, I don’t fall for that bullshit, remember? You’re hurt he didn’t tell you he had a daughter but you’re just going to bite your tongue because you don't want to defy him.”

“My job isn’t to bond with the Boss or question his decisions. My job is to protect him, GOT7 and now… _her_.” Mark muttered, shoving his arm through the sleeve of his sweater.

“How noble.” Jinyoung cooed sarcastically, “I’d like to meet her.”

"I heard you the first time." Mark rolled his eyes, “DS is trying to kill her, or did that fact slip your mind, yet again?”

“All the more reason I should shake her hand before she dies.” Jinyoung said simply.

Mark just shot his friend a look before walking out of his room and over to the fish tank on display by the front door. Jinyoung always joked that Mark having a fish as a pet was mismatched, that he should instead, own a Dobermann or pitbull, something powerful and menacing, like him. But Mark disagreed, there was something peaceful about fish and their silent floating that he appreciated.

_Swim, swim, swim._

Jinyoung inspected his friend from afar, watching him slide the top of the fish tank open before sprinkling flakes of fish food over the water. He rocked on his heels uneasily, he wasn’t quite sure how to approach the topic, it wasn’t one they often talked about.

Their feelings.

“Are you…okay?”

Mark stiffened, lifting his head for a moment before looking over at Jinyoung, “What.” He deadpanned.

“Don’t make me say it again.” Jinyoung said with a wince.

There were a lot of things he could’ve said in response but all that it boiled down to, all that truly mattered was what he came out with, “It’s my job.”

“DS is sadistic and cruel. They want her fucking bleeding heart on a silver platter, they won’t stop until they rip it out of her chest, by all means necessary.” Jinyoung said, even though Mark knew better than anyone.

Mark shook his head dismissively, he always did when it came to talking about DS, “I’m good at what I do. She’ll be fine, her kid too.”

Jinyoung sighed in exasperation, knowing exactly what he was trying to evade, and it pissed him off that he was going to have to spell it out for him.

“Yeah, but what about you?”

\-----

Heiran didn’t know how long she had been seated by the kitchen table, just staring off in the very direction that Mark had exited in hours ago when he left her with an ominous, _‘See you soon, duchess.’_

Drained.

This day utterly drained her until she had nothing left but a dazed stare.

_It's not fair. This isn't fair._

Those words kept repeating over and over again in her mind.

It wasn’t until the sound of her front door opening and light footsteps patterning towards her did something good flicker in her and she was pulled from her thoughts. She straightened up and caught sight of Lucy racing towards her, holding the heels that she had kicked off in the middle of the hallway earlier, one in each hand. “You didn’t put your shoes away!”

For the first time since her father showed up, she let out an honest, happy laugh, “C’mere.”

Lucy dropped her heels and Heiran resisted the urge to wince knowing that they were probably scuffed now. She held her arms open and Lucy charged straight into her embrace.

“Hi sunshine.” She flinched when her own voice cracked. “H-How was ice cream?”

“Oh my god sooooo good! I had rocky road and cookie dough with chocolate sauce and—”

Heiran smiled and nodded but Lucy’s voice buzzed around the edges before it faded out. All she could hear was her heart pounding.

“Mom?”

Her eyes snapped to her little girl who was looking up at her curiously. Overcome with emotion, Heiran pulled Lucy against, her nose buried in her hair, breathing in the fruity smell of her shampoo. She reminded her of warmth, safety, innocence…and sunshine.

That settled it.

No matter what it took, she’d protect this little girl with everything she had. No more pain for her. 

“Mom?” Lucy grunted; her voice muffled against her shoulder. “You’re squishing me!”

She didn’t want to let go, she wanted to strap her to her chest and carry her around whenever she went, but Lucy was growing up and she knew better than anyone how important it was for a young girl to be able to stand on her own two feet.

If only she could do the same now.

She pulled back and cupped Lucy’s face, “Hi, sunshine.”

“You already said that.” She giggled.

She smiled weakly and kissed Lucy on the top of her head, “Sunshine, you should know that things are going to be a little different from now on, but everything is going to be okay.”

“What do you mean?” Her eyes were big and bright as they blinked up at her mother.

It should be easier to talk to a 10-year-old girl. Why wasn't it? “We won’t be going out as much on spontaneous trips, we might have to cut back on some of your after school activities and…you remember our password right?”

She nodded studiously, “A grownup has to say the word _strawberry_ to show they are mommy's friend.”

“My smart girl.” Heiran whispered, “You might…um…notice some new things in the house and new faces. Mommy hired some people to help out.”

Lucy was already losing interest as she played with Heiran’s collar, “I guess that’s okay. Can I play with them?"

"No, sunshine. I hired this person to help me with work things. They don't have time to play with you." She wanted to shiver at the thought of Mark, tattooed and terrifying, glowering down at Lucy as she begged him to play badminton with her. 

"But, I get to play with Eun.” She whined.

Heiran's jaw was tense, "Well, this isn't someone like Eun. This man is very serious and he won't be around the house that often, either." She would make sure of it.

Lucy pouted but relented, "Okay. Fine."

“Okay.” Heiran said softly, brushing Lucy’s hair back. “Why don’t you go wash up? I’ll come upstairs to tuck you in.”

Her mood did a total change. Lucy nodded furiously and raced up the stairs with an excited squeal. Heiran tracked her with her eyes before calling out, “Sunshine?”

The little girl stopped midway up the stairs and peeked over at Heiran through the railings. Heiran felt her throat clutch and wondered, for a split second, if she should just pack them both bags and escape to a distant faraway island, completely off the grid.

Instead, she just said, “I love you.”

\-----

Mark was in the middle of installing a security camera around Heiran’s place, early the next morning when he noticed that in almost every room in the house, there was at least a minimum of 5 fancy-looking paintings hanging from the walls. The kind that people in berets and scarfs stood in front of, pretentiously murmuring about brush strokes and symbolism. 

This woman really didn’t have an eye for decorating using any other medium.

It was easy to notice considering Heiran was currently in the shower and had no idea that he was in her house. He had heard the water turn on the second he stepped into her foyer and worked deftly through her kitchen, garage, basement, and office doors. He preferred working in silence anyways. Fewer distractions, meant fewer mistakes.

The only room that was an exception to the painting rule was the little girl’s room. Lucy.

He had hovered a hand over the doorknob to her room, uneasy. He never got along with children, not that there were a whole lot in his line of business, but nonetheless, he was never the type to coo and coddle kids or melt at the sight of a toddler. Kids were too much of a liability and he preferred keeping his vulnerabilities at a minimum.

Pushing the door open with a hefty sense of reluctance, Mark stepped into the little girl’s room and let out a sigh of relief when she was nowhere to be found. Instead, he found himself staring at a bright blue sky and a large yellow sun painted across the walls of her room. Her bed was neatly made but her toys were scattered across her floor, her bookshelf was overflowing with books and her closet was jam-packed with clothes of various styles and colors.

He looked away, that was a lot of glitter and frill for his eyes to take.

He made quick work of her room, setting up cameras pointed at her door and windows that would sync with his phone, just like he did at every entrance in her house. He didn’t want to stay in her room any longer than he had to. It was suffocating. It was reminding him of what real childhood looked like, filled with all the toys, clothes and love in the world. 

He could withstand someone else's blood splattering on his face yet somehow this little girl's room was making his stomach churn.

Heiran’s room, however, was much different than her daughters. 

It was clean, with fresh colors accenting an otherwise white on white aesthetic. She had a vanity table set up with expensive creams, makeup and perfumes next to her bed where a large painting of a night sky hung over the headboard.

Her bed.

He didn’t think one that big existed.

Seemed like a shame to waste on one person.

He moved past her bed and unlocked the door to the balcony that overlooked her backyard, the lush green lawns, and neatly trimmed bushes but not a single flower in sight. He pulled the small camera out of his bag and grabbed a chair before hooking it up. Once he was done, he close the doors and stepped back to survey his work, testing the camera angle out on his phone.

At the sound of the bathroom door opening, he turned, stilling as Heiran strolled out from puffs of steam dressed in nothing but a towel and dew drops. His eyes worked on their own as they grazed the damp tops of her shoulders and skimmed over the expanse of her thighs that her towel couldn't reach. Even without the heels, they could be categorized as a national treasure. 

Didn't matter how much he couldn't stand her, he knew when to appreciate a masterpiece when it was in front of him.

It took a moment for the realization to register on Heiran’s face when she found him standing in front of her, staring.

“What the fuck!?” She screamed, clutching her towel and scrambling as far away from him as possible, “What the hell are you doing here?”

He blinked, his eyes falling back to her legs but the less than threatening growl that left her lips forced him to look back up at her face. It was different, seeing her without the perfectly applied makeup and rich wardrobe. “What do you mean?”

She looked incredulous as she stared back at him, “What do I mea—What I _mean_ is what the fuck are you doing in my bedroom, you jackass?”

“I told you I was going to be here, duchess.” He said with a slow arch of his brow.

She scowled at him, “Like hell you did.”

“It was one of my rules.” His eyes darted to the newly set up gadgets.

Confusion filtered her gaze until she noticed the newly installed cameras pointing at her balcony doors. She frowned at the sight, it really disrupted the minimalist white-and-green aesthetic of her room’s interior. “Okay, but _my_ rule was that you had to call before coming over.”

His face, yet again, was a mask of passive indifference, “I did. Multiple times.”

Her eyes darted to her phone that was set on her nightstand. Keeping her eyes pinned on him, she carefully rounded the perimeter of her bedroom so that she could reach over and press her Home button. Her face fell when she saw 5 missed calls from an unknown number. _Fuck._

“See?” He said pointedly, “You didn’t pick up, I thought you were dead. You're welcome.”

His dry tone left her scowling as she glared over her shoulder at him, “How did you get past my gates _and_ my front door?”

His grin was slow and menacing, she imagined the Devil looked like that right before someone signed their soul over to him. Although she tried to keep her face steady, her skin was pebbling in chills and he could see it from where he stood. “You don’t really want to know, duchess.”

“You did _not_ break into my home.” She breathed out, her eyes darting around nervously.

His face fell into a darkened stare, “I did, which means a lot of people could. People with worse intentions than mine.”

“Shit.” She whispered, fisting her hands to hide the way she shook. All this time she had the nerve to feel safe in her own house, she should've known better. 

He leaned against her wall, tilting his head back to stare back at her with lidded gaze, “It’s fine, I replaced it with something better. The same set up I use at my place.”

It beyond irked her that he spoke so casually as if her safety and sense of security within in her own home was something trivial.

“I was in the shower for 25 minutes, tops.” She gaped.

“I’m fast.”

She rolled her eyes and turned away, pulling her closet doors open. His eyes widened when she revealed an expansive array of clothes hung in order by colour.

Yup, he should’ve seen it coming.

He watched her scan the luxurious blouses, blazers, and dresses with a practiced eye. Just as she reached her hand out to pick one, he spoke, “The silk is my personal favorite.”

She froze and he saw her shoulders stiffen before she changed the direction her hand was moving and pulled a blue chiffon top out. He grinned, amused at the lengths she would go to be petty. She grabbed a pair of grey pants before turning to him with a glare.

“So, is my house is supposed to be secure and safe now?” She asked skeptically.

He shrugged, “It’s not a magic impenetrable fortress but if anyone suspicious comes in or out or drives by, I’ll have footage of it and can get here before they get inside. Your front door has two locks now and your alarm system will send alerts to me, the police, you, and one other person you pick. I suggest someone you know really well.”

She’d connect it with Yugyeom or maybe Eun, so people at her office would know something bad happened. God, it made her sick that these were her thoughts now. These were the plans she had to make. 

“Well fine. I guess that’s an upgrade. I have to get ready for work now, so…don’t let the door hit you on the way out or whatever.” She said, looking away and pressing her clothes close to her towel-clad body. She wasn’t sure how exactly she felt now. He didn’t deserve her gratitude but she was thankful that he was taking this somewhat seriously now.

If this was one of her employees doing their job, she wouldn’t thank them, that was why she was paying them. 

She was deep in her thoughts, trying to figure out how to express herself, when she noticed him still standing behind her, watching her, “Well? Aren't you leaving?”

“Oh, duchess, you should know better by now.” He said with a smirk, his gaze trailing slowly over the dampened strands of her hair. She could almost feel him twirling a strand around his finger tauntingly even though he stood far across the room from her. 

His lips quirked when he caught the brute end of her scowl. This assignment was a lot more entertaining than he had first thought it would be. 

She narrowed her eyes, “What are you talking about?”

“ _We_ have to go to work.”

\-----

“I can drive my own car.” She grumbled as she stared out the passenger side window as Mark wove her car through the freeway.

“Not anymore.” He said off-handedly.

She had tried to argue with him, convincing him that he most certainly did not have to drive her anywhere much less to work where people could see them. She had even gone as far as to try to yank it out of his hands when he wasn't looking, but he always managed to move faster all while grinning at her like it amused him to see her try.

Heiran hated how his presence in her life had quickly made her feel incapable and weak. It infuriated her that things she used to be able to do on her own now had to be done by someone else while she watched helplessly. A man. “I just think that this is all a bit ridiculous.”

“People are following your car, they’re sending hitmen after you and your vehicle, trust me, I’d rather you drive too, but this is the best option for now.” The amused, mocking tone was nowhere to be found now. The minute they stepped out of her front door; his entire demeanor changed. There was no more taunting or teasing, he spoke in short, quick sentences as if anything longer would mess with his focus. It was like he suddenly thrived in long swaths of silence.

She realized that this was the version of him that was tasked to protect her.

She turned to look at him, her eyes falling to the tattoos and making their way up his arm before taking in his angular profile. Every feature looked as sharp and lethal as whatever he was capable of. She couldn’t believe the two of them were sitting next to each other, just conversing as if they came from the same worlds, hell, the same universes even. 

They looked like co-workers carpooling, it just wasn't right.

Mark glanced at her from the side of his eye at her silence. In the short span of time that he’d known her, _silent_ was not one way he’d describe her. She was facing forward, her hair pulled out of her face in a sleek low ponytail as she watched her building come into view.

His eyebrow arched when Heiran directed him to a parking space with a sign that read: _VP of Finance: Seo Heiran._

She really was top shit around here.

Her eye twitched when he purposely parked in an empty spot that wasn't hers, "What are you doing?"

"You have a target on your back, do you really want to make it easier by parking next to a giant sign with your name slapped on it?"

He was right. 

Tilting her head away, she took a few cooling breaths before she reached for her seatbelt. She froze when Mark did the same while turning the car off. Her eyes followed his actions incredulously, “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Following you to work.” He said plainly.

She looked at him as though he spoke another language, “Wait, you are _not_ coming in with me.”

“What kind of a personal assistant wouldn’t come with you to work?” Every word dripped with sarcasm. "How else will I be able to personally assist you?"

“You’ll stick out, dressed like that.” She said, gesturing to his worn leather jacket and visible tattoos. He eyed her navy Chanel chiffon blouse tucked into her dress pants in return. 

The two of them standing next to each other already had them sticking out wherever they went.

And he wasn’t about to change into a suit for her.

He slid his arm behind her headrest and leaned towards her until their foreheads almost touched. She tensed her jaw and did everything she could not to back away. She would rather die than appear intimidated by anyone who worked with her father, “No one will pay attention to me if they learn about what you’ve been up to, duchess.”

Her eyes widened, appalled that he had the nerve to talk to her as if _she_ got them into this mess. His eyes glinted as he watched the rage build up in her at his words.

“Fuck off.” She barked.

He leaned back with a satisfied grin, watching her grab her handbag and travel mug before nearly kicking her door open. She stormed off, her heels clicking with every angry step, but he matched her strides in second, walking in time with her.

“You know very well that I didn’t do anything wrong.” She hissed under her breath.

His smile was measured as he reached out to hold the door open for her before she could reach for the handle. “That’s not what they’ll think.”

Before stepping in, she turned to him and tilted her chin up in a way that probably had men in expensive suits trembling but to him, it was nothing more than a dare, “Then why not just let me take the fall since they’ll all blame me anyways?”

“Because we can’t look weak when DS takes out someone who they think is part of GOT7. We don’t want people thinking that they can come after one of ours that easily. It's a bad look.” He said firmly.

She was about to scoff when he nudged her through the door, “Plus, you’re still his daughter.”

“Only by blood.” She said under her breath while smiling at the security guard who was eyeing Mark cautiously.

Mark’s fingers grazed her lower back, making her tense as they waited for the elevator, “You’d be surprised at how thick blood is.”

\-----

“Good Morning, Heiran, the Samsung rep is on line on—oh my god. It’s you.”

Eun’s face drained of colour as she watched Mark stroll in behind Heiran with his hands slipped into his jeans pockets. Heiran’s smile was strained as she took the post-it-note out of Eun’s frozen fingers. “Eun, meet Mark, Mark this is my assistant, Eun.”

He barely nodded at her before walking passed the two of them and into Heiran’s office. She clenched her jaw tight and repressed the urge or bark at him when Eun’s voice cracked behind her, “Are you okay? Is he threatening you?”

“No. It’s nothing like that. He’s my…new personal assistant.” She said with a forced smile, “You worry too much.”

The colour suddenly rushed back into Eun’s face as she frowned, her eyes growing wide in panic, “You hired someone else? A-Am I not doing a good enough job? I can take on more responsibilities if you’d like.”

She was beginning to ramble, so Heiran was quick to grip her elbow, “You’ve been doing great, Eun, this is not about you or your performance. I just needed someone to handle my more personal, non-work, related tasks.”

“Oh.” She said softly, her eyes still weary. Heiran empathized with her, it was a cut-throat industry and if she didn’t know what Mark’s presence was really about, she’d be nervous too if she was Eun. She wished she could tell her the truth about him and her father, but for now, all she could offer her was a smile.

“Mark is also going to be my driver from now on, so I can get more work done on my commutes. I’ll send you his email, cc him on my schedule.” She instructed while handing her coat over.

Eun nodded, trying not to seem bothered. Heiran made a mental note to buy Eun breakfast tomorrow as she closed the door to her office behind her.

“You could be nicer to her, you know.” She muttered at Mark as she sat down at her desk, turning on her computer.

He was sitting on her couch, scrolling through his phone, “I’m not paid to be nice to her.”

She tensed her jaw, “You scared her shitless the last time she saw you, she needs to believe that you could be a harmless personal assistant. One of my rules, remember?”

He frowned and lifted his gaze, pinning her down with just his stare, “I’m not harmless.”

“Then _fake it_.” She hissed.

“Your office is a mess.” He deadpanned, changing the subject.

Her eyes scanned the scattered papers she had left spread across the floor, “I had to see the proof with my own two eyes.”

“And?” He prodded.

“And, I fucking hate all of you.”

He tucked his phone away before standing, the corners of his lips turning up, “Don’t you have a call with a Samsung representative that you need to lie to, now? Seems more of a priority than my interpersonal skills and how much you hate us.”

She could swear that if he didn’t have at least 5 weapons hidden under his clothes, she would’ve loved to smack him. “Where are you going?”

“Miss me already?” He mused with a dry look.

She didn’t look pleased, “You’re the one that wanted to be here to ‘protect me’, not a lot of good that will do if you’re not here.”

“I’m going to do a round, get familiar with the building and its layout. This place is too big and has too many people, makes me antsy.” He said firmly, in the same curt tone that he used when he meant business. 

She watched him move to her door, in all black, his form look especially lithe and agile. Maybe it was the tattoos but there was something about him that smelled like death and blood; it made him exponentially more terrifying.

“Take my pass.”

He looked over his shoulder to where she held a lanyard out with a laminated card hanging off of it. He didn’t move towards it until she explained, “If anyone sees you with this, they won’t ask questions.”

Nodding, he moved closer to take it from her and she held her breath when he neared like if she made a sound, he’d snap and lunge at her. Her gaze was pinned on his tattooed hand that came up and fisted the lanyard, tugging it out of her hands.

A sick sensation overcame her as she imagined that same fist wrapped around someone’s throat, squeezing the life out of them until they fell limp against his grasp.

“Thanks, duchess. Don’t die until I come back.” He murmured.

That snapped her out of her reverie as she snarled at him, “I’m going to throw something at you, I swear to god.”

His face was blank, but his lips quirked as he turned and walked to her door, swinging the passcard casually around his finger, “I hid all the paperweights when I came in but feel free to get creative, duchess.” 

\-----

“I know what you’re up to.”

Mark’s step slowed as he shifted his gaze to the nerdy assistant that glared up at him from behind her thick black-rimmed glasses.

“Sorry?” He balked.

She narrowed her gaze, “Who do you work for?”

His mind rushed to place her face. Did she somehow know who he was? Did she work with one of their clients? Was she with DS’s crew? Was she one of Jackson’s jilted lovers that recognized him from headquarters?

Before he could answer, she was standing, firing questions at him, “You came from Walterson’s firm, right? I heard they used to have a private investigator on payroll to look into potential investors.”

Oh.

This was amusing. 

This five-foot-nothing graduate was sizing him up like she actually thought he was a law abiding investigator and by the look of her stance, she believed she had a chance to take down a career killer carrying a gun and 3 knives. 

She stepped up to him and he raised a brow in response, “I know what you’re trying to do. You think you can just prance in here as her personal assistant and get close to her before pushing me out of her inner circle and taking my job. Well, guess what, _buddy_ , I don’t care how many tattoos you have, I worked my ass off to be here, this is my dream job, and I am prepared to die before letting you take it from me.”

His lips parted, almost in admiration of this short woman. He was pretty sure that she’d try chucking something at his head too if she had Heiran’s nerve. But he wasn’t sure any other civilian would have that woman’s legs or nerve.

“Eun, can you pri—oh why are you still here?”

His gaze slid over to Heiran who was staring at the two of them with furrowed brows. He looked back at Eun who immediately dropped her glare into something more embarrassed. Stifling a snort, he just continued to swing the lanyard around his finger before nodding at Heiran, “I was just on my way out, duchess.”

Her eyes narrowed as she watched him walk out of her office with confidence in his gait.

God, she couldn’t stand him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How do we feel about their relationship? He’s in her territory now. I know everyone wants to see Mark meet Lucy, hopefully it will be soon, but he doesn’t seem too keen on kids…
> 
> Thoughts?
> 
> Comment and Upvote <3333
> 
> -loviet


	5. Fifth

She had been sitting at her desk with her fingers twisting together for about an hour, it was unlike her. 

Any minute now, the representative at Samsung that she had been meeting with regularly was going to call her, probably angrily considering how many times she rescheduled this call, and all she could do was stare at the phone. She really didn't want to do this. 

Heiran let her eyes dart to the sleek clock hanging over the door of her office. 

3 minutes. 

Taking a deep breath, she slapped on the plastered smile she always used when talking to investors or businessmen, even though they couldn’t see it, she learned that even the sound of a smile made men far easier to deal with.

She lifted the phone and pressed it to her ear, “Kevin, hi, how are you?”

“Not good, to be honest.” The dry voice said, “It’s been 3 days Heiran, 3 days of radio silence from you. We shouldn‘t have to reschedule phone calls this many times just to touch base.”

She clenched her jaw as her grip on the phone tightened. She never let anyone talk to her like that, like she was incompetent at her job. But she didn’t have much choice now, did she?

“I have to apologize, I’ve had a bit of a personal emergency and only managed to get into the office today.”

His sigh was scathing, “Listen, I just wanted to call to make sure everything is moving according to plan and that there’s nothing new that I need to bring to my executive meeting.”

She chewed the remaining bits of lipstick off her lips, “Nothing new to report. Although I should mention that I had a meeting with SmartLogic a few days ago and they are now more resistant to being bought out. They might run if they think a giant is trying to buy them.”

“Wait, what are you implying? I thought you said they’d agree with a hefty enough cheque from us. Do you think they want more?” He asked.

“The opposite actually. I don’t think they care about the money. I think they might be a moot point. I, instead, have a long list of new start-ups that we are looking to invest in who are way more receptive to having their technology bought.”

A beat passed.

“What the fuck are you playing at Heiran? This entire merger is so we can acquire SmartLogic. That was your bargaining chip. Now you’re saying that they’re not even on the table with it? Then why are we even talking about a merger? You think we want some random tech nobody? SmartLogic is going to blow up and we want them. We want them even more now that they’re not in it for the money because that means they know how valuable they are.” He boomed.

She winced, she shouldn’t have banked everything on SmartLogic so early on, but how was she supposed to know they’d be bogus?

“No one is saying that SmartLogic is out of the picture, I just think they just need more convincing to fully trust this process.” 

“That’s your job, you need to sort that out and get them on board. I don’t want problems, Heiran. I want solutions.” He barked.

“Absolutely. I just want to keep you in the loop on their status.” She said weakly. How was she supposed to get them back on board when they weren't even real?

God, she wasn’t sure how she used to do this so easily.

“Jesus Christ.” He muttered, “Okay, I need to hop off, let’s touch base again next week. I want updates on SmartLogic, maybe even have a sit down with one of their reps.”

That would not and could not happen. 

“I’ll see what I can do. Speak soon, Kevin.” She said, ending the call before he could reply.

She pressed her fingers against her temples. There was no way she’d ween Samsung off of SmartLgoic without blowing the entire merger.

“Knock, knock. Am I interrupting?”

She lifted her head and saw the CEO standing by her door. She shot up, straightening herself out, “Sir, what brings you here?”

“Thought I’d check in on you. I’ve noticed that you’ve been stressed lately, I know you have a lot on your plate with SmartLogic and with the VP of HR gone, it’s a lot. I want to make sure you’re handling it okay.” He said gently. 

She smiled, he might have impeccable standards and be a pain in the ass with deadlines, but she thoroughly respected and admitted the CEO. “It’s a lot but I’m used to it by now. I just want things to go well.”

He nodded, pleased, “You’ve been doing well, I’m very happy with your work. Oh! And I met that gentleman of yours on my way in.”

Her eye twitched, “You met Mark?”

“Your personal assistant, right? Jeez, Heiran, you’d think he was a bodyguard with the tattoos and the glare.” He said with a joyful laugh.

Her face flared, “I’m so sorry sir, he’s not the most polite.”

“Oh, I don’t know, I kind of like it, adds something new to the boring faces I see here.” He teased.

She jumped topics, not wanting to dwell on him for too long, “Things are looking good with my contact Samsung.”

If looking good meant a true dumpster fire.

“And I’m sure they will with you in charge. I always knew you had it in you, Heiran. I saw it when you first joined us as a financial analyst, you had drive, passion, intelligence and of course, I needed a Dragon on my team. You have worked hard, with more integrity than most people in this industry will show in their entire lives. Hiring you will always be the best decisions I ever made in.” He said with the kind of smile that normally warmed her up, but not this time.

Her heart was pounding so hard that she could hear it in her ears. Her mentor, the only person who believed in her and gave her a chance amongst an ocean of over-privileged men in boring plain suits.

He trusted her with his business.

He believed in her integrity.

What a joke. 

She gave him a tight-lipped smile as he stood from his chair and headed to the door before looking over his shoulder with a smile, “You’ve never let me down, I can’t wait to see all the places you’ll go.” 

“Thank you, sir. I appreciate it.” She said softly.

“You’re like a daughter to me, Heiran, I will always have your back.”

\-----

Mark was walking up the stairs to his apartment when his phone rang. 

He had just come from dropping Heiran off at her house and collecting an overdue payment from one of GOT7’s clients when he wedged his phone between his ear and his shoulder while digging his keys outs. 

“Yeah.” No one responded and he was about to hang up, thinking it was a misdial.

But then he heard it. 

Soft at first.

And then a lot clearer.

The sound of clicking. 

Like the click of a pen, repetitive, annoying, and a sound that he recognized. 

The phone slipped from between his shoulder but he caught it before it shattered against the floor. His eyes were wide, his body tensed in the way it does when an animal is deciding between fight or flight. He lifted the phone back to his ear, to hear more, but he was met with a dead line, he glanced at the number and saw it listed as Blocked.

His arm dropped lifelessly.

Fuck.

\-----

It was 2am when something jolted Heiran awake.

For a second she thought it was morning and that the alarm on her phone was waking her up when she realized that the alarm on her phone never echoed through the entire house.

It was pitch black outside her windows and her heart lurched as it dawned on her that it was the dead of night. Nothing ever good happened at night. The sound was still echoing at an ear-piercing decibel and she wondered how long it was ringing for before she had woken up.

Those were the alarms Mark had set up. 

It was like someone flicked a switch when she jumped into action, moving before her mind could catch up with her. Ripping her covers off, she ignored the chill pricking her skin and raced out to her door, her hand trembling as she cracked it open. Her eyes scanned the long dark hallway. Her house never felt so sinister before, she never felt so unsafe. 

Stepping out, she leaned over the banister and felt horror rush through her veins when she saw her front door wide open.

Someone had broken in. 

Someone was in her house. 

“What’s going on?"

Heiran snapped her head over at Lucy who was rubbing her eyes with a pout. Heiran looked back over the banister and felt her heart leap up her throat when she saw a shadow fill her front door.

Someone was coming.

Urgency filled her as she grabbed Lucy, hushing her protests and ran into her room, barricading the both of them into her closet. She couldn’t stop trembling as she pressed the two of them behind her clothes, trying to blend as best as she could. Her brain was already racing, cursing her for leaving her phone behind and not having any sort of a weapon, even a frying pan, with her.

They were sitting ducks.

Heiran could hear footsteps moving downstairs and it took everything in her not to start crying in fear. But that must not have been enough to fool Lucy who was whimpering against her neck when she sensed that something wasn't right. 

“Mommy, what’s happening?” She whispered, scared.

Heiran’s started shaking violently when she heard someone come up the stairs. The noise grew, as the doors to the rooms adjacent to hers were being swung open and slammed shut. It was only a matter of time until they got to her room. 

She could feel dizziness wash over her as she tightened her grip on Lucy, holding her tight to her chest as footsteps thundered towards them. Heiran held her breath when she heard the door to her bedroom opened and someone enter.

She slowly lowered Lucy to the ground, as the doors to the rooms adjacent to hers were being swung open and slammed shut. 

She pushed Lucy behind a row of pants, her tiny stature perfect for hiding out of view. She held up a finger to her lips and she quickly understood that her mother was scared, which meant she had to be too. The fear in her eyes crushed her heart as she nodded grimly. Someone so young shouldn’t be able to look so accustomed to pain.

Heiran rose, standing in front of where Lucy was hiding, bracing herself for being discovered when she saw the shadow stop in front of the closet. The doors opened and she flinched, a scream lodged in her throat until her eyes adjusted to the man standing in front of her. 

“Fucking hell, duchess.”

A gust of air escaped her lungs in what sounded like a scream and groan when Mark rested his hand against the frame of her closet, catching his breath. “You really know how to keep a man on his toes.”

She was going to pass out, whether from relief or delayed fear, she wasn’t sure.

She didn’t think she would ever be so happy to see one of her father’s men in her life. She was lightheaded, as reality rushed back to her, she was okay, there was no threat. It didn’t matter if someone had tried to break-in now, at least Mark was here. 

Wait. 

He was here. 

How?

Her eyes ran down the length of his body, frowning at the plaid cotton pants and disheveled black hoodie and his tattooed hand gripping his gun. He ran his fingers through his mused hair as he straightened up. 

This didn’t make sense, “What are you doing here?”

He looked incredulous as his eyes skimmed over her in search of injuries, “What kind of question is that? Your alarms went off.”

“You--You---” She stuttered as everything clicked into place.

The alarms were sent to him too, they woke him up in the middle of the night just like they did her and he raced over. Her eyes ran over his face before she reached out to grab his collar. He looked startled as she stepped towards him, eyes wide and a little bit frantic when she tried to tug on him. 

“Wh--”

She stepped closer and he tensed when she leaned forward and rested her forehead against his chest. He looked down at the top of her head and watched her shoulders rise and fall with each heavy labored breath. She shut her eyes for a moment, calming herself down as his scent trapped her against him. 

All she could hear was the sound of her breathing, her heart pounding in her head and his heart beating against her ears in a calming rhythm. Unlike the breakneck pace of her own, she matched her breaths to the steady thudding in his chest, "It's you."

His arms hovered over her, unsure if she wanted a hug or to be touched by him at all.

“Mom?”

Mark stiffened, his eyes darting over Heiran’s shoulder at the little girl with messy hair wearing a cotton dress staring up at him in confusion between racks of her pants. He slowly moved the gun in his hand into the waistband of his pants and out of her view.

“Who’s that?” She asked, her eyes surveying him up and down. 

Heiran pulled away from him and he wanted to grab her, use her as a human shield against the tiny thing whose gaze was penetrating him. 

She crouched down next to Lucy, pulling her curious gaze off of him, “He’s...one of Mommy’s co-workers. We need to talk so why don’t you go back to bed?”

“Bu--”

She smoothed her hands over the top of her hair, “Everything’s okay, sunshine. Mommy was a little surprised at the alarm, but we’re totally fine. See? Nothing bad happened.”

Lucy frowned and pushed herself up on her tippy toes to stare at Mark from over Heiran’s shoulder. He narrowed his eyes at her, nearly glaring as if challenging her to do something, despite being a child. 

“Okay.” Lucy said, after having determined Mark to not be an enemy. She kissed Heiran quickly on the cheek before racing off to her room. Heiran stayed still until she heard Lucy’s door close and the squeaking of her settling into bed. 

Mark matched her silence, pulling his phone out while waiting for her to turn, hugging herself for the chill. 

“What happened? What triggered the alarms? Why were my doors open?” She fired off, the shock freezing into a burning rage.

Mark shook his head, staring at his phone before tilting it towards her, “Someone tried to break in and got spooked by the alarms.”

She felt her stomach drop and her blood run cold as she watched the playback footage of the security cameras showing someone scaling up her front gates and dropping down the one side before creeping up to her door. 

The intruder was dressed in all black, his face masked and a hood pulled over his head as he knelt by her locked, pulling equipment out of his pocket before fiddling with it. A few minutes passed before he pushed her door opens. On cue, the alarms had started blaring and he took off running. 

It was like a scene out of a horror movie.

“How did he even get the door open? You said it was high security, that it was what you used.” She snapped. 

Her gratitude had vaporized as she glared up at him accusingly, but his gaze was even and unbothered, “Clearly it wasn’t good enough. We’re probably going to have to change your lock every week. I’ll have someone come up with something more advance.”

It was beyond her how a man that was trying to kill had stood in her foyer just moments ago and Mark was just talking to her like it was all a minor inconvenience with an easy fix. “And what the hell took you so long? What’s the point of having the alarms and cameras when you get here _after_ the guy got away.”

His eye twitched when she jabbed his chest with her finger accusingly. It was giving him whiplash, how she would gently rest her head against him one second and then get in his face the next.

He gripped her finger, squeezing it before pulling it away. He leaned towards her, his eyes dark, “The 406 was under construction. Had to take the scenic route.” 

“He could’ve killed me before you got here.” She hissed.

He raised his brow, “I could move in, we can play house.”

She shot her hand out and shoved him so hard that his back slammed against the door of her closet. The amusement glittered over his gaze in a way that told her that she was only able to push him around because he let her. “Take this seriously, Lucy was in her room alone.”

His smirk froze when he saw something close to tears line her eyes as she stared up at him with an ignited fury. “I had to hide my daughter tonight because I thought someone was going to kill me and her. If you ever put me in a situation where I hav--”

“What the hell do you expect me to do?” He snapped. He wasn’t a magician, he couldn’t just teleport himself to her in a second. He moved as fast as he could, he wasn't going to apologize for that.

“Next time, get here before my daughter has to witness my murder.” She growled. 

Mark kept his eyes on her and took a deep breath, looking over her shoulder at the clothes hung up in neat rows that she and her daughter were trying to hide behind. If the intruder did find Heiran in the closet, her daughter would've seen everything, maybe that was a little fucked up.

"Do you want me to spend the night?"

There was no teasing or sarcasm in his tone and when he met her eyes, she saw a genuine offer, an attempt to give her and her daughter a peaceful night's rest without waking up every hour to check if someone had broken in. She lowered her head to stare at their feet and realized that Mark wasn't wearing shoes; he had driven to her house in just his socks to try to get here as fast as possible.

"There's a guest room across the hall. Be gone by morning."

\-----

Heiran didn’t know how much more of this she could take. 

It was becoming unbearable, going from meeting to meeting, smiling, speaking, acting like she was her normal self and not like her father’s actions could ruin the lives of so many innocent people who were building careers and livelihoods off of this company. 

She used to breeze through these things with practiced confidence of having done it a thousand times before. But suddenly it was different, suddenly she had to constantly bluff. 

She was always better at playing poker with a golden hand. 

Even the beautiful paintings were failing at keeping her sane.

How was she supposed to talk about mergers and acquisitions when someone broke into her house trying to kill her less than 12 hours ago? How was she supposed to talk about financial reports when a gang member took her guest room for a night?

The sound of chatter coming from outside her office pulled her attention away from her phone as she walked out of the conference room. It was rare that the hallways were filled with anything but polite banter and quick phone calls; The sight of 10 or so of her department heads crowding around the doors was something out of the normal. 

She neared and frowned at a small group of unfamiliar faces dressed in grey suits with lanyards hanging around their necks. They were trying to talk over her employees, their voices rising and rising until hers cut through the noise.

“What’s going on?”

One of the men turned, his face young, bright and completely innocent. The worst ones always were, “And you are?”

Her eyes narrowed, “Seo Heiran, VP of Finance. Why? Who are you and why are you disturbing my employees during their office hours?”

He smiled, harmless, like the little brother everyone wanted, until he opened his mouth, “Choi Youngjae, lead investigator with the city’s auditor’s office.”

Her face dropped and her eyes widened, “W-What?”

He held his hand out and no matter how good she was at diplomacy, she just stared at it like it was carrying a deadly virus. His smile just grew as he retracted his hand and slid it into his pocket. “This wonderful establishment has been randomly selected to undergo an audit.”

“Randomly?” She rasped out.

She very quickly learned that things didn’t randomly happen to her.

They were being audited mere _days_ after she learned her father was funneling illegal funds through her.

He nodded, “Don’t worry, people tend to get nervous around audits but you have nothing to worry about.”

“Why do you say that?” Her throat was absolutely made up of sandpaper.

“My team and I are only here to review the company’s financial documents to make sure everything is above board, accurate and all taxes have been paid on time.”

She must’ve had a dubious look on her face because he just gave her a polite chuckle. It didn’t matter how friendly he seemed or how much he smiled, something about him didn’t sit right with her.

“Basically, as long as the company isn’t doing anything illegal, there’s nothing to worry about and we'll be out of your hair in no time.”

She managed to squeeze out a carefree laugh as if the idea of criminal financial activity was preposterous when she realized why he seemed off. 

His lips kept curling up into friendly smiles but his eyes were that of a shark circling for blood.

\----

“This is unacceptable Mark, you know that. You shouldn't have let this happen.” 

Mark resisted the urge to flinch, he wasn’t used to being scolded by the Boss. He was supposed to be the favorite, the one that could do no wrong. He was usually the one that the Boss sent to punish people who stepped out of line, “I know, sir.”

“The entire point of you being around her nonstop is so that no one from DS gets as close to her as they did last night.” He boomed.

“I’m sorry.” He muttered, his gaze lowered. “I don’t know how they got her door open.”

His Boss’s jaw tensed at the reminder of the close call, “It doesn’t matter _how_. All that matters is that they _did_ and we cannot let it happen again.”

Mark hated this, being spoken down to like a misbehaving child, “It won’t. I’ll make sure of it.”

The Boss walked around his desk and stood in front of Mark, forcing his gaze off the ground, “You’re the best I have. There are no one else’s hands I’d trust to put her life in, but you need to be better than you already are, in order to beat DS. You know that.”

He clenched his jaw at the low blow, “I know.”

“You need to get closer to her.” He ordered. If only it was that easy.

Mark shook his head, “She isn’t exactly fond of us right now, sir. Closeness isn’t going to be easy.”

“Oh, don’t worry, I have it sorted out already. Now, I need you to go and deal with one of Day6’s allies, they’re trying to scam them, which means I’m going to end up losing money. I need to teach them a lesson.”

He nodded briskly, “Yes, sir.”

The Boss turned his back to Mark, a silent dismissal, “Take Jae with you, he needs to see what happens when you mix friends with business.”

Mark paused for half a second as he thought of the leader of the rookie gang, one that still had a fraction of his soul left, who still tried to see the best in people, he would have to watch someone he thought of as a friend be killed in front of his eyes. 

Breaking the last of someone’s faith was never one of his favorite assignments.

“Yes, sir.”

“And when you’re done, I’ll send you the address to your new apartment.”

\----

This had to be a punishment.

Mark had dropped a traumatized Jae off at headquarters. The leader hadn’t stopped shaking the entire drive, but he knew better than to sympathize. It was easier Jae learned it this way than when someone killed one of his men or went after his family. Mark watched him stagger into the offices before following his GPS to the address his Boss had sent him. 

His new apartment. 

He dropped his bags on the ground, a mix of clothing, essentials, and weapons and just stared at the small, dingy room. 

His real place was so big that he had a guest room, an office, two bathrooms, and a gym. 

Mark was still reeling from the shock of his new home when he felt his phone buzz in his pocket. He pulled it out but didn’t look at the name, his eyes too busy taking in every pathetic inch.

“Yeah.”

“Most humans answer the phone with a 'hello' just so you know.” The voice snapped.

He blinked and pulled his phone away, glancing at the name. 

_The Duchess._

Weird. She never called him.

“Kind of busy, right now.” He muttered, walking around the living room, if you could even call it that. He tried to switch on the lamp by the window and watched it flicker before burning out. 

Fitting. 

She scoffed, “Well, sorry to disturb you, your Majesty. I just wanted to make sure you were actually doing something to make sure we don't get a repeat of last night.”

“Good news, I actually made some progress.” He grumbled.

She was impatient, “Well? What'd you do?”

“I’m currently standing in my brand new apartment that is exactly a 2-minute walk and a 30-second drive from your house.” He muttered with a sigh.

A minute of silence passed on her end as the news sunk in, “Wait, seriously?”

“Unfortunately.” He grumbled.

“Wait, the only apartments near me are the abandoned...oh my god.”

He rolled his jaw with a glare, even though she couldn’t see it, “I know.”

“So...is it nice?” She asked, stifling a laugh.

He scowled, “What? The apartment? No, it’s the size of a college dorm room and it smells like wet drywall.”

“Charming.” She snorted.

He sat on the flat, hard couch that sunk too far in and tilted his head back with an amused smile on his lips, “You should come over, I could give you a tour, duchess.”

“What a line.” She scoffed, and he could see her rolling her eyes over the phone. He grinned at the thought of seeing her in her silk blouses and expensive stilts, standing in this tiny shack. That would be one hell of a sight.

Silence fell over them as he listened to her uneven breathing press against his ear. It was close, very close, like she was standing next to him where he could feel her exist. She felt nearer than all the times that he actually stood in front of her or woke up in her house. 

His lips turned down at the sound of people in the background, “Where are you?”

“Huh? Me? I’m at home. The TV is on.” 

He knew she was lying and that he’d probably have to track her down after they hung up to make sure she wasn’t walking into something dangerous. 

“Are you going to fix my locks?” She asked quietly. 

He frowned at the change in tone, “Yes.”

It was a one-word answer, no elaboration or explanation but she found it enough to satisfy her hurried mind. He stated it like it was a fact, that she could count on him. As someone who had to listen to people bullshit at her all day, she appreciated him cutting the crap.

“Okay, good.” She mumbled, “Then I should go.”

“Back to watching TV?” He asked. He heard her breath hitch and he knew that she realized he had figured out that she was lying but instead of owning up to it, she was curt.

“Exactly. See you later.”

The dial tone hit his ears and he almost missed hearing her breathing instead. 

Hanging up, he stared up at his ceiling, wincing in disgust at the suspicious stain in the corner. He didn’t know why his Boss couldn’t have set him up in one of the mansions that were close to hers. Sending him the abandoned apartment that he had to break a rusty lock to get into was a power move, he knew it.

At least the bed looked relatively clean. 

A knock at the door pulled his attention away. He raised his brows, not that many people knew that he was living here now, and it wasn’t like he had a landlord or other tenants moving around. 

He looked at the door, his lips twisting up at the thought of who it might be, he didn’t think she’d show up at all much less this quickly. He sauntered the door, swinging it open, the barb on his tongue fading when he found Yeonhee standing by his door, not Heiran.

“Hey.” She said with a smirk. 

He blinked at her, his brain moving slowly at the sight of someone he wasn’t expecting. He hated being caught off guard, “You’re here.”

“Yeah, Jackson said you had to get a new place for your assignment and I thought I’d drop by and check it out.”

Fucking Jackson. 

His brow furrowed as he stared at her. Yeonhee had shown up at his door plenty of times before so it didn’t make any sense to him why seeing her now made him feel different than all those other times before. He used to feel content in familiarity and predictability.

Now he felt disoriented, displeased, almost...disappointed. 

“Well? Aren’t you going to let me in?” She asked, with _that_ look in her eyes. 

He knew what it meant, it was a tired routine that he was accustomed to, he knew this, he liked this, he was used to this, but fuck, it felt wrong all of a sudden.

“Yeah.” He said quietly, stepping aside, “Come in.” 

She walked past him, shrugging her worn denim jacket off, hanging it on a chair, eyeing the place with the same disgust. “I guess the protect-the-daughter assignment is going well.”

“I guess.” He said plainly. He didn’t like talking about work with her. 

She fell silent as she stared off across the room, “What’s she like?”

He stilled, his eyes shooting to her, “What?”

“His daughter. Jackson said that she was some big executive, our age too, apparently.” She spoke slowly and it unnerved him. There was something underlying she was trying to get at. 

He shrugged, “She’s fine.” 

She narrowed her eyes at him as he neared, “Heard she’s pretty.”

“She is.” He said simply. He wasn't one to lie needlessly. 

She rolled her eyes at his response, “And she has a kid.”

“She does.” He affirmed, he wasn’t exactly sure what she was hoping to achieve with this line of questioning.

She put her hands on her hips, “You left your apartment and moved in here for her.”

He paused at that. No. It wasn’t for her. It was because their Boss told him to. Because DS was too fast and he was too slow and now he had to make up for it.

“Why did you come here, Yeonhee?” He muttered. 

She walked up to him so that she could smell the fading scent of his cologne, she knew she hit a nerve.

Yeonhee remembered how she had noticed him when he was first introduced to the rest of them when they were 17.

He carried himself like no other boy she had ever seen, so confident, so unfazed like he could get himself out of anything thrown his way. He grew into a man that carried that same confidence as he rose through the ranks but now with the skill and prowess to back it all up. She knew right away that she had to have him.

He never chased after attention but everyone would be drawn to him and his stoic silence. 

“You know why I’m here, that’s why you let me in.” She purred. “Or we could keep talking about the Boss's daughter, what was her name again? I can't reme--”

He pulled her in by the neck, pressing his lips against hers, fast and hard so that he could drown it all out. 

No.

He didn’t want to talk about Seo Heiran. 

It was the last thing he wanted in the fucking world.

\-----

When Heiran hung up the phone, her face tensed the way it used to whenever she got into a debate with the men in her university classes. The kind of determined look that you had when you realized that no matter what, you were going to stand your ground. You weren’t going to turn back. 

The look you have when you board a ship knowing that it was going to sink.

She fisted her cellphone and stared up at the blue and yellow sign.

SEOUL POLICE DEPARTMENT

She knew what she had to do. With the auditor starting his investigation and after the break-in, she couldn’t try and pretend that she could actually make it out of this entire mess with only a few scratches.

She couldn’t just think about herself anymore. She had everyone at work whose careers would hit rock bottom if the truth about her came out, the CEO whose life’s work would fall apart and most importantly, Lucy, who would grow up with the constant fear for her life. 

She wasn’t selfish enough to take everyone down with her. 

And quite frankly, she couldn’t take it anymore. 

It was eating her alive, knowing that any moment the rug could be pulled out from under her feet; that one day someone would knock on her door and take her away in handcuffs. She felt as if she was constantly holding her breath. She couldn’t live like this anymore, no matter how strong she was. 

She wanted to be put out of her misery quickly and swiftly, and hell, maybe instead of taking down her daughter and her employees with her, she could take her father and DS down. 

It was final. She was going to turn herself in, tell the police everything and accept whatever punishment would be doled out to her. Anything would be better than the hell she was living now. She wasn't going to just sit by and let danger hang over their heads. She couldn't rely on her father.

Maybe the police would cut her a deal if she talked, set her and Lucy up in witness protection or something.

She smoothed her palms over her satin Chanel skirt and slid on a pair of one of a kind, custom made sunglasses over her eyes . She walked into the precinct, her head held high and her heels clicking behind her like a beat to a swan song.

Heiran made it to the front desk and waited silently for the receptionist to acknowledge her. 

“Hello, how can I help you?” The receptionist said, not lifting her eyes from the screen or stopping her fingers from flying over the keyboard.

She took a deep breath before speaking, her tone crisp and her words clear, “I’d like to speak to a detective, please.”

The woman didn’t pull her attention away from her screen, “What is it regarding?”

“I’d prefer speaking to a detective about it, actually.”

Her fingers stilled over her keyboard and she looked up at Heiran, her brows gently furrowed in the center as she inspected her. 

“Just a moment.” She murmured. She stood and signaled to the row of uncomfortable plastic chairs, “Take a seat, someone will come and get you.”

Heiran shot her a quick smile before sitting down, staring at the wall in front of her. 

It was a large corkboard that took up nearly the entire wall and every inch was covered with pictures. She blinked behind her glasses, her eyes taking in the different faces of young, unassuming, children. 

_HAVE YOU SEEN THIS CHILD?_

She felt her skin crawl, all these kids, taken. There were so many of them that their missing posters were overlapping each other, trying to fight for the spotlight so that someone would find them. So that someone would care. 

What a nightmare, to have your child go missing and having no clue where they were or if they were even still alive. 

Her eyes flitted across their descriptions.

_Brown hair._

_Black hair._

_Last seen wearing a yellow shirt._

_Last seen at the park._

_Female._

_Male._

_Likes._

_Dislikes._

_Nickname: Sunshine_

Haeiran sat up at the last one. 

What were the chances?

She stood, her footsteps unsteady as she walked up to the wall until she could push aside the pictures of other children to see one of her own daughter. 

Her eyes widened in horror and she felt very close to throwing up as she stared at the exact same picture of Lucy she had posted on Instagram. Her vision was fading in and out as she took her sunglasses off to read the description. 

_Name: Lucy Seo_

_Hair: Brown_

_Last seen: Her room_

_Last wearing: Pajamas_

_Nickname: Sunshine_

_Likes: Painting_

_Dislikes: People who can’t keep their mouths shut_

Heiran’s hand fell over her mouth as she tried to hide the terror. Her other hand, without thinking, reached up and ripped the poster down. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing, this couldn't be real. She turned the poster over and felt her heart sink. 

One the top of the page was her personal letterhead. Her personal stationery with her name, address, phone number, and email. The one that you could only get from her home office. 

Someone had been in her house. Long before Mark set the cameras up. Someone went through all of her belongings. 

Someone was watching her. 

She looked around, no one was paying her any attention now, most were just walking straight past her like she was a regular citizen just coming by their local police precinct to ask about an unpaid parking ticket. She shoved the poster into her bag in a panic, like someone would figure her out if they saw her with it.

Heiran could see the receptionist turn the corner from the side of her eye and moved quick. She put her glasses back on and sped out of the precinct, racing out to her car before anyone noticed her.

She was never here.


	6. Sixth

She didn’t know how she drove her car so fast without crashing but she managed to make it to the abandoned apartment building that Mark said he was living out of in one piece.

All things considered. 

Her heels were getting wedged in the cracks on the stairs but she would just yank them up and continue running up each floor until she found the one door with light bleeding underneath. Lucy’s poster was fisted in one hand as she banged on his door with his other. She wasn't sure what she wanted from him, but she needed him to know exactly what was at stake.

The door finally swung opened and her eyes widened as she stared at the woman in front of her, “Y-Yuna?”

Yeonhee’s face mirrored the same shock and confusion, “H-Heiran…what are you doing here?”

“Wh-I-I—“ Her brain was short-circuiting struggling to piece everything together when Mark’s voice echoed. 

“Who's at the door, Yeonhee?”

Heiran’s eyes darted across her face, trying to match the new name to it, “Yeonhee?”

The girl winced and held the door open wider. Heiran looked over her shoulder where Mark stood, shirtless, walking out of his bathroom running a towel through his damp hair. When their eyes met, he flinched, letting the towel fall around his neck. He did very little to hide the shock as he took in her appearance, silk, satin, and heels standing in doorframe that was rotting from old mold. 

“What’s going on, duchess?” His voice dropped an octave as he stepped in their direction. 

Yeonhee frowned, looking between the two of them before a sick realization kicked in, “You’re his daughter? _You_ are Mark’s assignment?” She turned to glare at him, “Why didn’t you tell me that I knew her?”

He ignored her and crossed the small apartment in quick strides until he was standing next to Yeonhee, leaving a sizeable gap between them, his eyes dark as he stared Heiran down. “What happened?”

She glanced at Yeonhee’s expression, discomforted by her annoyed look, before pushing past him and storming to the kitchen island where she slammed the poster down. 

Mark was on her heels, standing behind her and looking over her shoulder at a picture of the smiling little child, “What the hell is that?”

“That’s my daughter’s Missing Child poster.” She growled, whipping around to stare at him, unfazed by how close they were now standing to each other.

He reached around her and picked up the piece of paper, bringing it close to his face to inspect it, “Someone threatened you?”

“They’re saying if I talk, they’ll take her.” She fought back the scream of frustration. She hated how no one ever seemed as shocked or as appalled about the things that were happening to her other than herself.

Yeonhee rolled her jaw and slammed the door shut, not that it broke either of them out of their conversation. She watched them, how close he stood to her, how tension filled his face, and how he never sounded annoyed or bored the way he always did when he spoke to her.

Mark flipped the poster over, his eyes landing on the letterhead before they flicked to hers in morbid confirmation. 

“Where did you find this?” He asked. 

She stiffened but met his gaze challengingly, like she dared him to react to her confession, “At the police station.” 

He didn’t react, of course, he just watched her closely, trying to dissect the look in her eyes, he didn’t like that it was not easy to do. She was a civilian, someone who didn't have illegal secrets hiding in the closet, so why was it always so hard to dismantle her? 

“Why the fuck were you at the police station?” Yeonhee snapped. 

Mark closed his eyes, letting out a breath, and looked away as Heiran’s body tensed. He knew the pair of them would clash the minute they found out who each other was. Heiran's glare was unrelenting, “I was going to turn myself and all of you in. What are you going to do about it?”

Yeonhee scoffed incredulously at Heiran's blatant taunt, “Are you insane? 

Heiran let out a breath before attempting to move around Mark and close in on Yeonhee but Mark’s fingers wrapped around her wrist and pulled her back. 

“Don’t.” He said quietly. 

She gaped up at him, thrown by the sheer audacity that he had, telling her what to do when it didn't concern her safety. She twisted her hand out of his grasp and knocked her shoulder against his as she moved towards Yeonhee.

“I don’t know, maybe I am. Maybe, after being nearly run off the road, shot at, and having my house broken into, I’m going a little fucking insane. But I don’t deserve this life, I don't deserve to live in fear when all I've done is live my life with integrity.” 

“Oh, is that what you’re calling it?” Yeonhee asked with a laugh, “We all know you were going to sell us off to Samsung. I mean, it wouldn’t have worked, we would've stopped you before they started poking around but get off your high horse. Integrity? You lied to my face.”

Heiran’s face twitched, she couldn’t believe the young woman who she viewed as an innovative entrepreneur whom she admired, ended up being a criminal thug, just like her father.

To believe that she once actually _liked_ Yeonhee.

“At least I wasn’t breaking laws or endangering you. You would’ve been bought out with a fat check, I have people trying to kill me and threaten my daughter because of what your gang did and what you helped them do.” She snapped. 

“Well I—“

“Yeonhee.” Mark spoke firmly, but not enough to call commanding. Regardless, Yeonhee stopped mid-sentence and looked over at him. 

His eyes lingered on the back of Heiran’s head. Her normally perfectly styled hair was pressed and matted at the back and he didn’t understand why the sight of it unsettled him. 

“Leave her alone.” He said quietly, but enough to cause Yeonhee’s eyes to widen. Mark never defended anyone from verbal sparring, “You should head home, it’s getting late and we need to deal with this.”

Yeonhee couldn’t believe it, after everything the two of them had, even if it wasn’t as much as she wanted, she still earned more than this from him, “You’re kidding.”

Mark was just silent and she fisted her hands against her side before grabbing her things and storming out of his apartment, casting the two of them a look of utter disdain before slamming the door. 

Heiran could feel a headache growing as a silence fell over them, the only sound being the agonized moaning of the old dilapidated pipes in the building. Then she heard him sigh before speaking, much to her dismay.

“So…the police station, huh?”

She whirled around and glared at him, “Can you blame me after what happened?”

“No, I can’t. Actually, I thought you’d crack and go to the police a lot sooner.” He said honestly, “But the cops can’t help you, even if you turned yourself in and took full responsibility.” 

She walked back over to him and he saw the pure fatigue in her eyes as she picked up the poster and stared at her daughter’s smiling face, “Clearly.”

“That’s not what I mean, duchess.”

Instead of meeting his gaze, she stared at his chest and the beautiful designs that covered almost every inch, almost calming her to a trance. It almost didn’t even feel like he was shirtless. “Then what do you mean?”

“DS has people everywhere, including in the police, even if you were put in a holding cell, you wouldn’t be safe, they have an officer take you out before you were questioned, it’ll just make it easier for them and harder for you.” He explained. 

She leaned her back against the kitchen island and pitched forward, bracing herself on her knees, “Oh god. I’m going to be sick.”

Mark walked over to her, resting against the island next to her and staring down at her head. His fingers itched to detangle the knots in her hair, he didn’t feel comfortable when she didn’t look put together.

“Why would they put that poster up when they could’ve just locked me up and killed me like you said?” She asked, her voice muffled at her angle. 

He crouched down so that they were leveled and just leaned his head back in thought, “Not sure, they probably didn’t want to risk the attention it’d bring, or maybe there’s something else they have in mind.”

“Oh, fantastic.” She deadpanned. “What are you going to do about this? I need her to be safe. I need to make sure no one takes her from me.”

“I’ll start taking her to her school, then. I’ll bring her back to your office and we’ll all leave together, okay? Send your driver on vacation or something.” He offered, the last thing he wanted to do was have to spend time alone with the little creature but he didn’t have much else to offer to ease her mind.

Not after a direct threat.

She chewed on her lip, her eyes knit in concentration before she sat down next to him, “Fine, okay but you need to always update me when you're with her.”

"You got it." He agreed.

She nodded her head quietly to herself, “I always knew Lucy would be in danger, but they know she exists already. They’re going to use her and I’m too much of a coward to try and call them on their bluff.” She admitted. "I thought I'd be to keep her out of it for much longer."

He watched her with careful attention. He had never seen what a good parent looked like but he imagined Heiran got pretty damn close. She was so young but she put her child above everything. He wondered if all parents were like this; he wondered if his were. 

“Lucy is lucky.” 

Heiran looked startled, “What do you mean? Why?”

Mark opened his mouth to answer when he realized what his answer would’ve been. 

_She’s lucky to have you._

He shook his head, “Look, they don’t want Lucy, they want you, they’ll use her to scare you but they won’t hurt her, not when you’re alive.” 

“Gee, reassuring.” She grumbled. 

Mark looked straight ahead, lacing his fingers together, “I know DS, they keep their collateral damage low to avoid attracting too much attention. They want you, they might use Lucy to scare you but hurting her won’t even be on their radar because she's not the one who they think sent the cops after them.”

“How do you know them so well?” She asked, “Is there like some gang version of Facebook?” 

He grinned and tilted his head back against the banister before his smile fell off, “You spend long enough time in this business, you find out that it’s actually a very small world. There are only a few key players and after a while, you start to bump into each other.”

“That’s a euphemism, isn’t it?” She asked. 

She was fast.

“I forgot I was talking to someone who knows more than she should. Yeah, it’s a euphemism. After a while, you start killing people close to them to send messages and they retaliate. Everyone knows everyone down here.” He said. 

She tilted her head, “Down here? Like in hell?”

He didn’t understand how everything she said made him want to laugh, not sardonically, but a good hearty laugh, “Maybe. Everyone has a history with each other. I specifically have one with DS.” 

“What’s the history?” She pried. 

He rolled his jaw, “I think you’re forgetting something.”

“What’s that?” 

He locked eyes with her and she shivered, it was sometimes beyond her that she was looking into the eyes of a man that had watched the life drain out of the eyes of others. Those were the eyes of a man who killed for a living, he shouldn't look so normal. He reached out and slowly twirled a strand of her hair around his finger in a lazy way that had her holding her breath.

“We’re not friends, duchess. You don’t get to rifle through all my dirty laundry.” He sang.

She pulled her hair out of his finger and crossed her legs to face him, “I feel like I need some insurance if I’m supposed to be trusting you with my life and Lucy’s.”

He turned away, “This isn’t a trade.” 

“I’ll share mine if you share yours.” She suggested. 

He didn’t trust her, someone who successfully ran in the corporate world knew how to play people, they knew how to manipulate trust and work for their own benefit. She was smarter than her father gave her credit for. His Boss thought she was some poor defenseless doe, but Mark knew there was something more dangerous lurking underneath. 

Maybe that’s why a part of him was so fucking intrigued by an assignment he thought would be a pain, he could sense dysfunction and pain the way a drug-sniffing dog found cocaine. 

She was a dragon and she was looking for a way to exorcise the devil. 

“I didn’t know you were dating anyone.” She said suddenly. 

Mark blinked and moved his gaze to her, “What?”

She shook her head, “I don’t know. I just never pictured you as having a life outside protecting me and doing whatever you do for my father. It’s weird thinking you have a normal social life.”

“I’m not dating her.” His tone was too sharp and he answered too quickly, it was an uncharacteristic display of emotion, even to Heiran who had only known him for such a short time.

“Oh…okay. Sorry I brought it up.” She muttered. Maybe trying to share small talk with a killer wasn’t the most productive use to time. 

He looked over at her, it was strange for her to suddenly be asking questions about his perso— “Wait, are you using me to distract yourself from freaking out?”

“No, I’m trying to humanize you, with much difficulty I might add.” She spat back. 

His lips twitched up into a slow grin and it must’ve triggered something in her because he actually got half a smile back. It was a first, having her face him without animosity or hate coating her features.

"Does this mean I'll get the dirt on your romantic life now?" He mused. 

She let out a dry laugh, "Won't be much dirt to share."

"What about Lucy's dad?" He asked. 

Heiran tensed before looking away, "Not around." 

"Have you dated since she was born?"

She clenched her fist, "Yeah, once."

"End well?" He prodded.

She furrowed her brow, "Now I know how you felt about prying, lesson learned."

He wondered about that relationship now, who he was, how her kid fit into it all, and how it fell apart. It must've hurt. 

That's why he never got into one himself. 

She huffed, “I can’t believe someone is threatening me and Lucy and we're sitting here talking about our torrid dating pasts.”

“You know…” He said slowly, “Even though you haven’t see me do anything yet, you and your kid will be okay. I will keep you both safe, these half-assed threats are the best they’ll be able to do. I’m not going to let anything hurt the two of you.” 

She chewed on her lip thoughtfully as she stared at him, the idea of trusting someone else to protect her and Lucy seemed bizarre. But she was grateful now that all the fear and panic drained the fight from her, “This is a new approach you’re taking.”

He snorted, “You catch more bees with honey and all that.” 

She rolled her eyes good-naturedly before stretching her legs out. He stared at her feet, encased in a pair of pearl white heels next to his bare toes. “When is this all going to end? DS wants revenge on me and they’re not going to stop until they get it. What are you going to do? Kill them all? It’s not like you can spend the rest of your life next to me. What’s the long term goal, here?” 

“I _could_ kill them all, if you’d like.” He said simply. “It’d be a bit tricky but I could do it for you.” 

She groaned and dropped her head into her hands, “No, that’s not what I’d like.” 

Although she could confidently say this was the first time a man had ever offered to kill an entire crime syndicate for her.

Mark watched her curiously, wondering why not. Sure, wiping out an entire gang wouldn’t be that easy but it would be the easiest solution to her problem, so it was beyond him why she wouldn’t take him up on it. 

His eyes fell back to her messy hair and it got the better of him as he reached out and threaded his fingers through the strands, working through the knots. Heiran froze, unsure of what was happening as he combed them out patiently. She let his fingers work through her hair for a few more seconds before lifting her head to stare at him, bewildered. 

Now it was his turn to freeze, his fingers still sunk deep into her hair as he fell darkly into her penetrating gaze. Too much. This was all too much. He moved fast, pulling his hand out of her hair and pushing himself up off the ground. 

“You’ll be fine for today, just head home, tell me if anything looks or feels out of the ordinary, I can be there in a second.” He said after clearing his throat. 

Heiran fell silent and just watched his face and demeanor change before nodding. In the long list of things she wanted to do in her life, sitting in a dingy apartment next to a dangerous man, sharing barbs and laughter wasn’t in the top five.

She folded her legs under her and made a move to stand when Mark’s hand came into view. Swallowing the lump in her throat, she rested her hand in his, warm, large and capable and let him help her up. Steadying herself she stared at their hands, her manicured one over his tattooed one before slowly sliding it out of his.

He stepped to his door holding it open for her as she smoothed her palms down the side of her hips before picking up Lucy’s picture. 

“Can I…can I keep this, actually?” He asked, grazing the tip of his finger against the poster. 

Heiran blinked before handing it to him, “Okay, but why?”

He shrugged and led her out the door, “I’m not entirely sure.”

Heiran left with confusion filtering her gaze as she headed home and Mark returned to the old apartment, wondering how the two women currently infiltrating his life managed to pass through his ‘house’ tonight. One deeply rooted in his life of crime and the other, the exact opposite. 

He walked to his kitchen and pinned the picture of Lucy onto the fridge. 

The last time he saw her, she was peeking her head out from behind a pair of her mother’s pants. He had to admit, he felt bad for her, someone so young and innocent being used as a threat. 

He tilted his head and just stared at her picture when a weird thought crossed his mind.

If Jinyoung, Heiran’s biggest fan, didn’t know she had a daughter…how did DS? 

\-----

Youngjae had his hands tucked into his pockets as he strolled into the waiting room of Heiran’s office. He stood by the door, staring at her empty chair.

“Is Ms. Seo in?” He asked Eun.

Eun narrowed her eyes at the side of his head, resisting the urge to childishly stick her tongue out at him and instead replied, “She’s taking a personal day.”

He hummed in thought as he scanned the interior of her office, pristine except for the paperweights that were strangely peaking out from under the couch. Eun appeared in front of him, smiling pleasantly as she shut the door to Heiran’s office, away from his prying eyes.

“I’ll notify you when she comes in.” 

Youngjae smirked at her fake smile before nodding, stepping away, “Sure, but while I have you, has your boss had any meetings with anyone out of the ordinary recently?”

Eun paused, her mind flashing to Mark and the other older man who had come to her office. Ever since that meeting, Heiran began acting weird, and Mark started hanging around more often. “Nothing comes to mind. If you’d like to know more about Ms. Seo’s meetings and schedules, I’m sure you can just pull her calendar. It’s accessible on the company network.”

Youngjae smiled back at her, like a shark baring its teeth, “Seems like she keeps a tight knit circle around her.”

Eun grit her teeth and kept her tone diplomatic, “That’s what happens when you trust your team. Have a good day Mr. Choi, I’m sure I don’t need to show you out."

\-----

Jinyoung made a face when he walked into his office and found Yeonhee stretched out across the little chair across his table.

“Mark isn’t here, so why are you?”

Yeonhee rolled her eyes, “I know, I just came from his ‘new’ place.”

“Great, so if you both got laid why am I being screwed?” He deadpanned while pulling his laptop out and setting it up.

Yeonhee paused for a moment in thought, ignoring his pettiness, “Did you know that his daughter was Seo Heiran?”

“Yeah.” He said stiffly. 

She growled at him, “Why didn’t anyone tell me?”

“Because your part of the mission is done until further notice.” He replied calmly. “Only people still involved know about her. It’s protocol.” 

“She was at his place tonight.” She said lowly.

Jinyoung sat up in shock, “What? She was? Fuck!” 

Of all the times he decided not to break into Mark’s apartment, this had to be the worst. 

Yeonhee rolled her eyes at his excitement, “She came in angry about something involving a threat against her daughter because she went to the police to turn us all in. The police, Jinyoung!”

“Not surprising.” Jinyoung said blankly, “She’s a civilian, they always think that the police are the solution to their problems. That's why Mark's there, to buffer.”

Yeonhee scowled and looked away, “You should’ve seen how he acted when he saw her. He was so concerned and focused only on her. Hell, he even stood closer to her than he ever did with me.”

“Jealousy doesn’t look good on you.” He said before returning his gaze to his screen.

Yeonhee fell silent, staring off to the side as Jinyoung’s fingers flew across his keyboard before she began to speak, her voice soft.

“You know, when I first met Heiran I was so impressed by her, she was beautiful and smart and powerful and I remember thinking, ‘thank fuck I’m the one on this misson because if Mark met a woman like her, I wouldn’t stand a chance,’ tell me this isn’t the universe telling me to fuck off.” She muttered. 

Jinyoung narrowed his eyes and leaned back in his seat, “Mark isn’t an idiot, he’s not going to fall for someone he’s assigned to, especially not the Boss’s daughter. But, come on, he’s been clear about whatever you two have going on. You can’t be hurt if there’s ever anyone else, even if it’s not Heiran.”

“Why can’t I be good enough for him?” She blurted, abruptly.

Jinyoung paused, his cold tone chipping away slowly at the vulnerability in hers, “You’re not the issue, Yeonhee. It’s not that you’re not good enough, it’s that he doesn’t want the same things as you. You don’t really know him as well as you think, there’s a lot of things holding him back. If he ends up dating someone else and ends things with you, it’s not because you’re not good enough, it’s because he wants something else and he’s not going to ask you to change who you are for him.” 

He wondered why he and Mark struggled to talk about their feelings with each other but Yeonhee pranced in here with her problems and the conversation flew back and forth naturally. Apparently, conversations become stunted when you spent your entire childhood working together, making sure that you never did anything to get each other killed. 

Stakes were never that high with Yeonhee, she was as bound to her office as he was. 

“But I don’t want him to want anyone else.” She argued weakly.

Jinyoung sighed, gritting his teeth, “Look, you are one of the best people we have cleaning our money, you terrify men in a male-dominated business, you have enough money to buy a modest island, who gives an actual shit if Mark wants to date you or not?”

She paused a moment, mulling over his words before she narrowed her eyes at him, “How much did that pain you to say?”

“Get out of my fucking office.”

\-----

“I need you to teach me how to fight.”

Mark looked at his watch, it had been exactly 2 minutes since he rang her doorbell to drive her to work, the fact that she stood in front of him in running shoes and sweatpants should’ve been the first red flag.

“It’s not even 9am.” He muttered as he stepped into her house. "Why are you already trying to make my life difficult?" 

She frowned and moved back to stand in front of him, “I know you moved closer to me, but I need to know how to defend myself when you're not around.”

“I can get you a gun.” He replied simply. 

She glared at him, “No. Guns.”

“Don’t you have to be at work?” He tried.

She grinned victoriously, “Took a day off.”

“You said you had an auditor investigating you, is taking time off two days in a row the best way to act like everything’s normal?” He asked in exasperation.

“Mark.” She said warningly. 

He clenched his jaw and stared her down, only to meet her equally challenging gaze, “You realize that the people who come after you will have weapons, right? You could be a martial arts master and none of that will matter when someone shoots you point-blank.”

She tilted her head up in a way that surely commanded total attention when she was in a boardroom giving a presentation, “Teach me.”

Over his dead body.

\-----

Maybe he died and just didn't know it. 

Maybe that's how she managed to get exactly what she wanted.

They stood facing each other in a dingy gym that Mark had taken them to, it smelled like wet cement and all the equipment looked old and tattered. 

She was persistent to the say the least and somehow managed to wear him down before he could even tell what was happening. 

He was dressed in a thin sweater and pair of gym shorts, his hands braced against his hips, sizing Heiran up as if he still wasn’t sure if this was a good idea. He learned how to fight by the same people who probably liked watching dogs fight. He couldn’t teach her the same way he was taught.

And he wasn’t sure if Heiran or his Boss would take too nicely if he ended up roughing her up by accident.

“Are we just going to stare at each other or are we going to get to it?” Heiran asked impatiently. 

Mark just continued watching her, much to her frustration, “I’m being serious, I want to learn how to fight and if you’re not going to teach me, I’ll just—oof!”

Heiran’s eyes were twisted shut and she groaned on impact when she opened her eyes and found herself staring up at the ceiling with pressure. Mark moved his hands off of her thighs and sides from where he had grabbed her when he slammed her down and rested them on either side of her head, peering down at her. 

“First lesson, don’t be distracted, especially when you’re talking, that’s when someone will try to go for you.” He instructed. 

He could feel her warm breath graze across his neck in soft puffs, her eyes darting across his face. He waited for her bark at him, her net worth alone could probably buy him out ten times, so he imagined she wasn’t going to take too kindly to being tossed around.

“Okay, so how do I make sure that doesn’t happen to me again?” She asked, determination sparking her gaze.

He sat back, tilting his head, intrigued by her reaction, “Let them come at you first, just be ready to break out of their hold or stop them before they get close.”

So he spent the next hour walking her through basic self-defense maneuvers and some simple punches and kicks that could probably help her fight off a mugger, he wasn’t too sure about her taking on DS’s men just yet, though.

When she was getting winded, he stepped back and watched her chug a bottle of water and check her phone. 

That was when he moved.

Mark approached her quickly and quietly, just as if she was a target he was pursuing and just as she dropped her phone in her bag and turned, he grabbed her arm tightly and the base of her throat with gentle pressure; not nearly as much as he’d use if this was real.

She gasped, her eyes panicked just for a second before they hardened. Just like he showed her, she twisted out of his grasp, locked her fingers over his other arm and broke out of his chokehold. Heiran kicked at the side of his knee and pulled his body forward so that he fell face-first on the mat before pinning his arm to his back. 

It was the first time someone had ever taken him down and he wasn’t even mad, he was impressed at how quick she adjusted.

Until he felt her straddle his back, her knees tight against the side of his hips. She leaned forward, lips at his ears, and he had to grind his teeth to fight off the shivers at the sound of her laughter against him. He couldn’t account for the reaction her proximity elicited from him, he frowned momentarily.

“I must be pretty good if I knocked out a killer that easily.” He wondered if she knew that she was practically purring in his ear.

That ignited something in him as he used his position to flip over, causing her to tumble to the side with a yelp. He moved fast while she was still recovering from her daze and rolled on top of her, pinning her wrists over her head and sitting on her thighs. 

He leaned close to her face as she stared up at him in shock, he liked fighting her, she was fast and unpredictable. She didn’t have formal training or experience in gang fighting. She fought to survive which meant she would get ruthless, “Don’t get cocky, duchess.” 

When was the last time he actually _enjoyed_ a good spar? 

She glared at him and a small flicker of excitement pinched him, he hadn’t felt that in a really long fucking time. His eyes glinted in anticipation as he waited to see what she’d do next, “Your legs and hands are trapped, what are you going to do now?”

He thought she’d scream or start thrashing to try and throw him off of her, he figured there was very little else she could do, pinned to the floor like this, but he shouldn’t have underestimated her. 

She narrowed her eyes and before leaning her head back and slamming her forehead against his. 

“Fuck!” He yelled, tumbling off of her to press his hands to the sore spot on his forehead. Heiran was in no better shape, rolling to her side and groaning loudly, mimicking him by pressing the heel of her wrist against the red spot growing on the center of her head. 

She squinted her eyes in pain as she looked over her shoulder to wear Mark was laying, rubbing his injury. He caught her stare and scowled at her, “What the hell was that for?”

“I was being creative.” She muttered. 

He scoffed and watched her roll over to him, still holding her head, “Sorry.” She mumbled embarrassed. 

He rolled his eyes before standing, she watched with a frown as he walked out of the room and left her stunned. Was he really that mad at her? 

She was about to force herself up to go after him when he reappeared with a towel pressed to his head and another one in his hand. He tossed it on her stomach and she flinched at the cold. Heiran peeled back the towel to find an ice pack wrapped up.

“Use it, or else it’ll bruise.” He said plainly, “And don’t apologize for beating me. Doesn’t happen often, enjoy it, duchess.”

\-----

"Sir, I heard back from my man inside the precinct, he says she saw the warning and ran off before anyone saw her."

DS tapped his favorite silver-coated pen against the armrest of his leather chair, a gift, "I don't like close calls." 

"I know sir, but I don't think she'll be coming back any time soon."

He hummed, now spinning the pen between his fingers, "Is everything else going as planned?"

"Yes, sir. Although, I know her friend is coming back into the country soon. I don't think my contact can delay his return without him getting suspicious. His return might complicate things, especially if he recognizes anyone from Got7." 

DS laughed, "I know her friend, he won't be a problem, she might try to go to him for help, but I'm sure Mark will have to convince her not to just to save him and that fucking bastard Seo. There's no way she'd risk involving him in this anyways."

"And Mark is the other issue, it seems that Got7 has assigned him to her for protection as you suspected."

"Hmmm, I wouldn't consider it an issue, clearly we're going in the right direction. They have to incredibly nervous if they took their best enforcer and made him her bodyguard. They're using him to get into our brains, but they"re forgetting we know just exactly how to get into theirs."

"So, shall we move onto the next phase, sir?"

"Yes, but wait until her friend comes back first, I'm sure he'll put Mark on edge." 


	7. Seventh

Mark was becoming more interested in watching Heiran work than he was at scouting out possible threats. It kept him distracted during the dullest parts of his day.

There was just something about how her entire demeanor changed when she stepped into her office that he couldn't help but notice. She commanded power and demanded respect. People who came to meet with her often kept their gaze averted and never lingered around for more than a few seconds. She spoke sharply and quickly, her words chosen carefully and left the strongest impact. 

He wasn't used to people who carried power without raising a hand or firing a gun.

But what intrigued him the most was when she spoke with other executives, she was relentless but she also knew how to manipulate the men around her, punctuating statements with compliments to distract them long enough to make them agree to her ideas. No matter what backhanded compliment she'd received, she'd just laugh and brush it off, whatever it took for her to get what she wanted, she'd put up with it. She knew exactly what weaknesses people in her own cohort had and she knew exactly how to capitalize on those exact weaknesses to have the men that challenged her, at her mercy.

A big-picture person is what they would call it. 

She'd be dangerous at poker, he concluded. 

He was leaning against the wall of her office next to paintings that looked too pretentious for him, watching her as she reached for her phone to answer yet another call; putting it on speaker. At this point, she had abandoned her chair and just floated around the room, but never too close to him. He hoped this was another manager calling to tell her that they weren't going to meet a deadline. That shit made her furious, and he _loved_ watching her get furious.

"Hello?" 

A gentile polite voice spoke, “Ms. Seo? This is Ms. Kim, I’m Lucy’s teacher.”

“Oh yes, Ms. Kim, thank you for calling, is everything alright?” She asked, chewing on her lip in worry.

“No, no, sorry if I scared you. Everything is fine, it’s just that there was a gas leak at the school so classes are ending early, Lucy will need to be picked up at 1pm, today.”

Heiran’s eyes widened as she glanced at the slim Rolex sitting on her wrist, "O-Oh, it’s 12:40pm now…”

“Yes, it’s all been very sudden, of course, we will stay with the kids until all the parents get here. I know how busy you can be.”

Her eyebrow twitched at the gentle jab. It was true, that before she hired a driver, Lucy's teachers would find themselves waiting hours with her after school until she could be picked up. She would never get over the passive-aggressive judmental looks she'd always get, “I’ll be there.” 

“Fantas—“

She hung up the phone, shutting her eyes for a moment before she began gathering her things. Mark raised a brow, watching her body wind up, the tension building in her muscles, “We’re really heading out? Is this the best timing?”

He looked over his shoulder where Youngjae strolled in, speaking casually to Eun who kept shooting daggers at him. Most of the people who had been filtering in and out of her office today had been employees panicking and confused about the audit. Youngjae, despite Mark never meeting him, had certainly did his job in striking the fear in everyone. Heiran tensed her jaw, closing her eyes briefly in sweet prayer, and Mark grinned at the sight.

One of these days that woman was going to lose it on some poor sucker and he hoped he’d be around to witness it.

Opening her eyes, she continued gathering her things, ignoring Youngjae as he walked into her office scrolling through his phone, “Morning, Ms. Seo, I was just letting you know that there’s a meeting in a few minutes with all the executives and department heads regarding their specific client files.” 

She knew what that meant.

They were going to want her SmartLogic files. 

“I need to go pick up my daughter from school.” Heiran said, walking to her jacket, refusing eye contact.

Youngjae smiled, watching her, “Surely you’re not leaving now.”

“Her school lets out in 20 minutes.” She said simply.

Youngjae leaned against her desk and watched her slip her jacket on before looking over at Mark, “Why not send your personal assistant to do it? Isn’t that his entire purpose?”

Heiran’s gaze darted to Mark who already had his eyes on her. Her brows furrowed as they exchanged looks. Youngjae’s smile grew as he watched the two of them stare each other down as if he just suggested they switch bodies for the day. 

“I just don’t think someone as high up as yourself could justify leaving your employees during such a vital time…don’t you agree? Especially since you are in charge of the company’s finances?”

Heiran bit down on the inside of her cheek so hard that she tasted blood before looking at his smarmy face with a sugary sweet fake smile of her own, “How could I not?”

“Fantastic.” He said with a Cheshire grin, “I’ll notify the others that we’ll be seeing you at the executive meeting later today with the rest of my team. I’ll leave you it.”

He turned to leave but stopped next to Mark, tilting his head at the one man that stood out from the other employees. Youngjae lived his life based on facts, statistics and numbers, he never liked anomalies. 

“When did you say you started working for Ms. Seo?” He asked. 

Mark narrowed his eyes, he hated his wide smile and sparkling eyes, they looked too kind for a man whose words were sharp and calculated, “Recently.”

He raised his brows before his eyes fell on the tattoos on Mark’s hands, namely the ones that spelled out GOT7 for a split second before he nodded at him, "Planning on staying long-term?"

"I'll see where it takes me." He said blandly.

Something glittered in Youngjae's eyes before he nodded curtly and walked out. Mark followed his back with his eyes until Heiran started to move. 

She pulled her car keys out of her pocket and walked over to Mark, pressing them down into his outstretched hand, “I’m screaming bloody murder inside my head.”

“Do I have to pick her up? Can’t you call her an Uber?” He muttered.

She narrowed her eyes at him, “Not funny. Now listen, I’ll send you a picture of her and let her teachers know you’re coming to pick her up. When you find her, tell her I sent you and use our code word, _strawberry.”_

“You have a code word?”

She gave him a dubious look, “Obviously. Strange Danger 101.”

“Fine. Strawberry, text updates and pick her up. Got it.” He said. 

He was about to pull his hand away when she squeezed it, “P-Please be careful. She’s the most important thing in my life. Don’t let anything happen to her.” 

Mark’s eyes scanned her face, his throat tightening at the utter vulnerability in her expression. It didn’t make sense to him. How could someone allow themselves to be so _vulnerable_ , so _weak_ for another person? “I won’t.”

Heiran chewed on her lip and nodded, dropping her hand to her side. She trailed after him, lingering unsurely by the door as he headed out.

“Bye.”

Mark stopped, mid-step, completely obviously to Eun’s curious stare as he turned to gape at Heiran.

 _Bye_.

What the fuck?

When did she ever say _bye_ to him? Normally he’d just abruptly walk away or she’d dismiss him condescendingly when they ended conversations with each other. They never said a word to each other when he’d drop her off each night. There would just be the sound of doors slamming shut before she’d walk into her house.

There was never a farewell. 

“B-Bye?” He said back, wincing at how unnatural it sounded to him. 

She gulped the worrying lump down her throat, her brows still knit together, “Come back safe.”

Oh.

The flustered tension in his shoulders relaxed as her sudden concern made sense. Of course, she wanted him to come back safe because he would be with her daughter. He nodded tersely, not realizing how stiff his shoulders got or how he shivered when he was out of her view. 

What an odd feeling, hearing someone wanting you to come back to them, safely. 

\-----

He wasn’t sure how long he waited in front of Lucy’s fancy school before getting fed up and going out to find her himself. He was considering planting a tracking chip on her at this rate because he wasn’t going to let this become a reoccurring thing. 

There were better ways for him to spend his time than sitting in his car waiting for some kid. 

He tried the front doors first only to find them locked. He tried peeking inside but the lights were turned off and there wasn’t a soul in sight. He walked around the back of the school, wondering how long it’ll take before security finds a tattooed stranger in all black creeping and what they’d do to him. 

The entire playground was cleared out except for a small group of boys crowding around by the walls. Frowning, he was about to turn away to search elsewhere when he overheard one of the boys.

“Why don’t you ask your rich mommy to give you more lunch money, punk?”

He stared at the little huddle and waited to hear more, “My mom said that you don’t have a dad either and that she’s too young but at least she’s rich. You can pay your fee now, you’re late.”

“Leave me alone!”

Mark raised a brow at the small but furious voice yelled. Sounded about right for a 10-year-old girl.

He stood behind the group, his shadow casting over them as they slowly turned to look over at him. Their eyes widened but they stood their ground, he admired that. He met many people twice and triple their age who couldn’t even look him in the eye. 

Mark glanced over their pudgy shoulders to where a little girl that he’d only seen once in a closet in the middle of the night and once on a missing child poster, stood, rubbing tears off her face. 

Lucy. 

He squinted when she dropped her hand and gripped her arm to cover a blooming reddened rash. Carpet Burns, he used to give them to Jinyoung when they were kids, surely not the most painful thing someone would experience in their life, but fucking hell, this just pissed him off. She was outnumbered and out of their weight class. 

At least Jinyoung used to be able to burn him back just as bad.

“Lucy?” He asked. 

She pouted, distrust flashing in her eyes the same way it would her mother’s, “Who are you?”

“Your mother sent me to pick you up.”

She flinched away until he crouched to meet her gaze, “She told me that you like _strawberry_ ice cream.”

Her eyes widened at the code word and she took half a step towards him, she carefully inspected him and it was eerie how similar her mannerisms were to her mother’s. When she saw his tattoos, recognition dusted over her face. 

Jesus, she was so small. 

“See you tomorrow, Lucy, you can pay us then.” 

Mark looked back and watched the boys walk away, cackling like little evil villains as they jostled each other around. 

_She’s the most important thing in my life. Don’t let anything happen to her._

He sighed before facing her again, “Did they do that do your arm?”

She covered it with her palm before nodding slowly. Mark’s face darkened as he stood, he looked around before finding an abandoned soccer ball in the corner. He grabbed it and took a few steps towards the boys before punting the soccer ball in their direction. 

Lucy watched in awe as the ball sailed in a perfect arch before it smacked the ringleader in the back of the head, sending him tumbling forward. The entire group was stunned but when they turned, Mark was storming towards them and terror-filled their faces. 

Before the one on the ground could stand, Mark had made it over to them and grabbed him by the backpack and lifted him off the ground so that his feet couldn’t reach the ground. 

“Are you the one that hurt her?” His voice was quiet but deep, almost a growl, and it sent a chill through the boys. 

He gulped, the bravado from earlier long gone, “W-What?”

“Oh, you can’t talk now? You had a fucking mouthful to say when you were stealing from that girl.” 

“We weren’t stealing!” One of them piped up. 

Mark’s eyes slide over to the other boy and he immediately shrunk back down under his scorching stare. He dropped the boy back to the ground and stepped towards the ground of them, “Taking something that isn’t yours is stealing. I know because I’ve dealt with a lot of thieves at work.”

“A-At work?” The third one whimpered, “Are you a police officer?”

Mark grinned, his teeth looking a lot more like the fangs of a predatory animal, “No kid, I’m the opposite. I kill people for a living. I kill people who steal from me and my bosses and guess what?”

“What?” One whispered. 

His grin grew, “Lucy’s mom is my boss.” 

“Are you going to kill us?” Another one asked, fear lining his eyes. 

Mark shrugged, “That’s up to you.”

“You’re lying.” 

He titled his head at the boy he had hit with the ball. Looks like someone was getting brave. He glanced back at Lucy who was watching from far away. 

Mark reached into the back of his jeans and pulled out his gun before holding it up. 

Heiran never had a rule about showing other kids his weapons. “Think I’m lying now? I used this yesterday. Killed a guy the day before. I know how to punish people who steal and trust me, it’s a lot easier to bury a kid.”

Their eyes were wide with horror as they stared at the sleek black metal in his hand, “So how about we try this again? I’m going to bring Lucy over here, you’re going to tell her that her payment was a mistake and that _you’re_ going to pay her back all the money you took from her and then you’re going to apologize. How does that sound?”

“S-Sounds g-good.” One stuttered out. 

Mark beamed before tucking the gun back in, “Good decision. Oh, and if you ever lay the fucking hand on her again, I’m going to chop your fingers off one at a time.”

They were rooted to the ground as Mark walked over to Lucy and knelt down to her height, he opened his mouth to explain the situation when she cut him off. 

“They’re going to apologize, right?”

He stared at her, stunned at the expectant tone. “Yeah, they are.”

“Good.” He just watched her, baffled, as she held her head high, her arms crossed indignantly over her chest as she strutted towards the group of boys who took a step back when she stopped in front of them. 

Mark just stood slowly, gaping at her as he watched the embarrassed and scared boys duck their heads and mumble out hurried apologies. Lucy said something to them and they all nodded before casting Mark a nervous look and sprinting out of the playground. 

Lucy spun on her heel and skipped over to Mark, as if everything was made of rainbows and puppies. She laced her hands behind her back and smiled up at him, her entire face brightening. 

Suddenly the nickname _Sunshine_ made a lot more sense. 

“You’re my favourite.”

Mark stared back at her, his face completely blank, “Favourite what?”

“Favourite butler.” 

His eye twitched at the title and resisted the urge to snap at her. A butler? Was she out of her tiny little fucking brain? 

She stretched her hand out and waited, wiggling her little fingers. 

He quirked a brow, “Can I help you?”

“Mom said I need to hold an adult's hands whenever I’m walking.” She explained as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. 

He scoffed and nodded his head in the direction of his car, “I don’t think so, I’m already running late. Start marching.” 

Lucy pouted before gripping her backpack straps and walking alongside Mark. “Do those kids normally do that to you?”

“Sometimes, they’re meaner to the smaller kids though.”

He couldn’t believe there were people smaller than her.

Mark slid his hands into his jacket pockets. He wondered if Heiran knew what was happening to her daughter. 

He glanced at her from the side of his eyes. The silence was suffocating, he couldn’t remember the last time he was around a child. He had no clue how to act or what people their age liked or needed. All he wanted was to break every law of the road to get to her house as fast as possible and throw her at Heiran. 

He opened the passenger side door for her and waited for her to climb in but she just frowned, “Mom said I’m not old enough for the front.”

Mark closed his eyes with a sigh before slamming the door shut and opening the one to the back. He then watched Lucy struggle for about 10 seconds trying to climb into the jeep that Heiran insisted he take, before just grabbing her by the hood and lifting her into the seat.

He didn’t bother buckling her in and just closed the door before getting into the driver’s seat. He let out a huge sigh of relief as he turned on the car and began driving towards Heiran’s house. Almost free.

“My name is Lucy Seo, by the way.” She chirped from the back seat.

He glanced at her through the mirror before looking back at the road, “Mark.” 

“Hi, Mark! I can’t wait to be best friends!”

_Lord, save me now._

\-----

She was like a windup toy with no end. 

The drive from Lucy’s school to her house took exactly 25 minutes and Lucy hadn’t stopped talking for a single one. Mark never responded to her, not even with a non-committal grunt, but that didn’t sway her. 

She was practically having a conversation with herself and she couldn’t have seemed happier as she chattered on about her day. He didn’t know how Heiran or anyone else put with it. It was incessant. 

“And then I told her that if the Lochness Monster was fake, how do all those old pictures exist?”

He wasn’t even sure how they got on this topic. 

Wanting to end her nonstop rant, he dialed Heiran’s number into the touchscreen and wasn’t surprised when she picked up on the first ring, “Mark? Did you pick her up? Is everything okay? Did you find her alright?” 

“Mommy!” Lucy cheered, nearly leaping out of her seat.

Mark flinched at her ear pricing shriek before keeping his eyes trained on the road, “She’s fine. Am I taking her home or to your office?”

“Home. I still need to be here for a few hours.” 

“Fine, I’ll drop her off and then come around.”

“Mom? Can me and Mark get ice cream?” Lucy asked, leaning so far forward that her seat belt was straining against her chest. 

He heard Heiran scoff, “She’s already talking to you like you’re her friend. No, sunshine, no ice cream, you haven’t had dinner yet and it’s a school night. Mom’s going to be a little late tonight, but we’ll have dinner together, okay?”

“You’re always working late.”

Heiran fell silent and Mark found himself focusing on the road in front of him with so much concentration as if doing so would avoid him overhearing this conversation.

Heiran finally let out a resigned sigh, “I’m sorry, sunshine, I’ll try and come early tonight. Until then, Mark’s going to watch you, okay?”

“Like hell, I am.” He muttered. 

Her tone came out in a harsh hiss, “Language.”

He huffed, “It’s not my job, duchess.” 

“Please. I’m going to be tied up here, it’s easy, just keep an eye on her, make her a snack and then just let her play or watch tv or something.” 

“I’m supposed to be prioritizing you.” He shot back.

Her breath caught before she spoke, “I’ll be in the office for the next bit, I’m not going anywhere, just pick me up when I’m done. I’ll be fine until then.”

“I can’t believe I’m doing this. I fucking hate you.” He hissed, whispering ‘fucking’ so that Lucy couldn’t hear. 

“Thank you.” She replied genuinely. 

He pulled into her driveway and opened the door after killing the engine, still holding his phone. He got out and walked to the house, not bothering to look back to see if Lucy was keeping up. “How’d the dickhead’s meeting go?”

“Is that what we’re calling him, now?” She mused. 

He imagined her walking slowly around her office as she spoke, eyes tiredly scanning her shelves of business awards and finance texts. He wondered if she was still wearing those heels he had seen her in this morning or if she’d taken them off to let the carpeting soothe her soles.

“Since you’re too chicken to tell him off, yeah, that’s what we’re calling him.” 

She huffed, “It’s called being diplomatic.”

“Different word, same shit.” He unlocked Heiran’s front door, his phone wedged between his shoulder and ear, “Has he found anything, yet?” 

Mark barely took a step inside before Lucy charged past him, knocking into his legs. She didn’t stop to shed her backup by the staircase, just carelessly tossing it on the ground before running up to her room. Mark rolled his eyes, re-arming all the alarms and locks behind him.

“I don’t think so, not unless they’re keeping everything they find under wraps. They’re still on payroll finances, they haven’t started looking into our investments yet. Make sure Lucy folds her uniform away nicely and that she spends at least 30 minutes doing her homework before she can play. And don’t forget her snack, I won’t be back until late."

“You know someone once offered me a million dollars to kill a presidential candidate?” Mark grumbled as he wandered into the kitchen. 

“And yet all the candidates are alive and well even to this day.” She clicked her tongue, “Why didn’t you do it?”

“That’s beside the point. I am overqualified to be a babysitter. What the fuck am I supposed to make for a snack?” He barked.

“I cut some vegetables up earlier, they’re in the fridge.” She said matter-a-factly. 

He frowned, opening the fridge and scanning the contents. Produce as far as the eye could see, all untouched, “I’m sure he won’t look into SmartLogic, he’ll have so many other investments to investigate first.”

“Or he’ll do the opposite and go after SmartLogic because they’re our biggest investment. Why couldn’t you guys steal less money from my company? Why did you have to go for multi-millions?” She grumbled.

“We’re overachievers. What did the other executives say?”

“It was brutal. I’m getting reamed out over this audit thing, so many of these guys have been waiting for the day that I fuck up. I’m trying to act like I’m cooperating but it’s only a matter of time before they looking into the Samsung merger and then SmartLogic. I have no way of stopping him or slowing his team down, they want me to turn over all information by the end of the month. What the fuck am I supposed to do?” She complained.

“Play him.”

“What?”

“Play him like we played you.” He said while pushing aside boxes of fruit to find a little Tupperware container with neatly sliced vegetables inside. He pulled it out and stared at the corner where Heiran’s handwriting spelled out Lucy’s name with a small drawing of a sun next to it.

He couldn’t understand how this was the same woman who head-butted him.

She sucked her teeth, annoyed, “Mark, I need concrete ideas, expand.”

“How did we get you into this mess? By implicating you. Do the same to him.” He said, noting the cheap bottles of soju tucked behind the milk. His brand too, at least there was something about her that didn’t scream class and sophistication. 

“I’m not committing a crime.” She said sternly.

“No one said you had to, but if someone sent an anonymous complaint regarding how his audit on your company wasn’t totally random, but an attempt to ruin your merger, I’m sure his superiors will have to pull his investigation.” He scanned the fridge while holding the container, “Does she like hummus?”

“She hates the texture.” Heiran replied, “Isn’t that fraud? Isn’t it a crime to report something that isn’t true?”

He spooned a dollop of hummus onto the plate of vegetables before putting everything away, “How do you know it’s not true?”

“I guess I don’t.” She admitted slowly.

“Then you have your solution.” He said.

“Is it snack time?”

Mark flinched and looked over at Lucy who was out of breath and staring up at the counter with excitement in her eyes, “Dear god, you’re like a gremlin.” 

“Mark!” Heiran exclaimed, “That’s my daughter, do you mind not calling her a fucking gremlin?”

Mark ignored Heiran and held out the plate to Lucy, “Here.”

Her smile dropped when she saw the spread, “I hate hummus.” 

“You’re a dick.” Heiran said in his ear.

Mark’s lips twitched, lowering his voice, “Then why do you sound like you’re laughing, duchess?”

Lucy frowned at the plate and held it out to him, “I don’t want it.”

“Tough luck kid, it’s all you’re getting.” He mused, swiping a carrot off the plate.

Heiran choked down her laugh and made a tsking sound, “Mark, that’s my baby girl, give her what she wants.”

He poked her on the forehead, “Pretend it’s ice cream, I’ll even get you a cone.” 

Lucy glared at him before spinning around on her heels and storming away, muttering something under her breath. 

“What was that?” He called out. “Speak up, kid.” 

Lucy paused a bit before calling out to him from the dining room, “I said you’re not my favourite butler anymore.” 

Mark narrowed his eyes and hung up on Heiran’s cackling laugh. 

\-----

Heiran's fingers lingered over her keyboard as she stared at the drafted email she had prepared for Youngjae’s supervisor.

Everyone had left the office, it was just her and this email that accused him of bias and professional impropriety. It ended with a request that his investigation and selection of their company be put under review before they continue with the investigation.

There was no guarantee that this email would do anything, maybe they get emails like this all the time from disgruntled people trying to avoid investigations, or maybe they’ll take this seriously, maybe he actually picked them on purpose and maybe he’ll lose his job and they’ll be left alone. 

All she had to was hit send.

it was such an easy solution but she couldn’t get herself to do it, 

Because maybe she’d be wrong, maybe they were randomly picked, maybe he had the best intentions, or maybe he picked them on purpose because he knew something was wrong with SmartLogic and wanted to get to the truth.

All he was doing was exposing faults and frauds that already existed. Could she try to get him punished for something that she or really, Got7, had done? How would that be fair? Her father used people as an ends to the means, completely oblivious to how it might impact them. She didn't want to become that.

It would save her but it would also save her dad, and he didn’t deserve her lying for him. 

She closed the email, deleting it from her drafts and leaned back in her chair, pressing her palms to her eyes, exhausted and back to square one. Mark’s plan made sense in theory, but it didn’t take into account the biggest variable. 

Her conscious.

He was good at persuading people with grey-area logic but the possibility that Youngjae did something wrong and malicious wasn’t enough to actually accuse him of it. She couldn’t do that to him without proof. 

She sat up, something flashing in her eyes. 

Proof.

If she could find something on Youngjae, an email, a text, a voicemail, proving that his investigation of her and her company was under false pretenses or against procedure, she would have the right to get his investigation shut down. 

She needed to get to his cellphone, he was always on it, there had to be dirt she could find. 

Gathering her things with a fire lit under her feet she headed to the lobby where Mark would be picking her up. She was glad she didn’t send that email. 

She was going to get through this by doing what her father never could. 

By using her morals.

\-----

“Hey, Yuggie.” She said softly into her phone as she paced back and forth in the lobby, waiting for Mark.

Now more than ever she missed him, she missed when he was around and things were simpler, her worries were smaller. She missed being kids, drunk and sweating in student housing, trying to cram for classes that wouldn’t matter.

“When I die, I would like a live band playing a rendition of Aretha Franklin’s Rocksteady.”

She smiled despite herself, “Why are you planning your funeral?”

“Because this job is going to fucking kill me.” He muttered.

She rolled her eyes, “Shut up, you love your job, you worked your whole life to get there.”

“Yeah, but I loved it better in Seoul.” 

She sighed, no longer in the mood to make him feel better, “Yeah, I did too.”

“I guess it’s good that I’m coming home soon, though.” He sang.

She straightened, her heart leaping in excitement of seeing him after years, “No way! When?”

“Next week. I’ve been annoying the shit out of my boss to speed up my transfer, he finally caved, I think he signed the papers just to get me to shut up.”

“You ass! Why didn’t you lead with that? I’m so excited!” 

“Heiran…” his voice grew serious, “are you crying?”

She tilted her face up, trying to force her tears from spilling before letting out an empty laugh, “No, I just realized that I miss my best friend. Hasn't been the same without you needling your way into every aspect of my life.”

There was a paused and she could almost imagine the concern furrow of his brow until he spoke, “I’m sorry, I’ve been gone for years and you only just _now_ realized you missed me?”

She walked out to the front of the building, needing the chill of the breeze to cool her down, “You’re so annoying, you know what I mean. I just really wanted to see you, I’m so happy I don’t have to wait a month.”

“I can’t wait to be back.” He said softly. "I missed you, Hei."

She stared at her feet, the custom made heels shipped directly from a little boutique in Paris, “You’re gonna miss the people there, though.”

“Not really.” He snorted.

She frowned, “Yuggie…”

“Breaks over, gotta head back, I’ll talk to you soon and send you all my flight information. See ya.” He said brightly before hanging up.

“Bye.” She mumbled, sad he had to leave but elated that they’d soon be in the same timezone. 

Tucking her phone away, she hugged herself, wondering what was taking Mark so damn long. “Ms. Seo?” 

A chill crept up her spine at the sound of her voice foreign out of a stranger’s mouth. She turned and felt her heart drop into her gut when she stared at two police officers standing in front of her. When did they get here?

“Can I help you?”

“We’re with the Seoul Police Department, we need you to come with us.” He reached for her arm but she took a fast step back.

She frowned, “Why?”

“We have some questions regarding your business with SmartLogic.” He gruffed out.

Her heart sank as she staggered back another step, there was no way they could've found out about it so fast, “You can come speak to me during my office hours.”

“This isn’t a negotiation, ma’am.” He said sternly.

“Alright, then where’s your warrant?” She fired back. "You can't force me to cooperate unless you have one."

One of the officers shook his head, “You’re not under arrest, we just have a few questions we’d like to ask you at the station.”

“I’m not saying anything without my lawyer.” She reached back into her bag to pull her phone out when one of the officers yanked her hand out, twisting it sharply so that a gasped shriek left her lips.

“W-What the hell are you doing?! You can’t touch me like that.” She demanded, trying to pry her arm out of his grasp.

“DS was right about needing backup.”

Her eyes widened at the familiar name and the dark growl that came out of his mouth before she craned her neck up to stare in horror at the smug grins of the men who were holding her. She did her best to follow Mark’s lessons, attempting to twist her arm out of their hold and kicking him down but Mark never taught her what to expect when going up against two people. 

The man who held her, just caught her other wrist on the downswing, clasping them together so hard that she could feel the tips of her fingers getting cold. She grunted and yelled as he began dragging her away, she tried to root her heels into the ground and fight back but when she felt the cold press of a knife to her back, her throat closed up.

A sharp whistle broke their attention; the two ‘officers’ turned to locate the source of the noise, momentarily distracted. Heiran’s eyes widened when she saw Mark storming towards them, his jaw set, a murderous look in eyes his and strangely dressed only in a t-shirt. 

“Catch.” He called out, tossing his keys at the man who had Heiran’s wrists in a vice grip. Without thinking, he let go of her wrists to catch his keys before snapping his head up in panic upon realizing his mistake.

Mark kicked him back by the chest, sending him sailing backward as Heiran dodged out of the way. The other man threw a fist but Mark ducked it, catching his arm, holding him in place before punching him so hard in the face that Heiran could hear the sickening crunch of his nose. 

She could only watch as he moved as if dancing to a carefully choreographed routine to a song that only he heard. He would gracefully step away from attacks, use his assailant’s momentum to pin them down as he beat them into submission. No matter how swiftly he moved, his punches and kicks were thunderous.

Every move was sharp and calculated, he’d knock down one man and while he was recovering from the attacks, he turned to the other, dismantling him without even flinching at the knife that would swing in his direction. His face never broke its blank expression except for the deadly look in his eyes with each blow he delivered. 

Those weren’t the eyes of someone who took joy in the sadism of hurting someone, those were the eyes of someone who treated violence like a science. Who attacked with precision and without wasting a single swing to subdue their enemies as fast as possible. 

Her grip around her purse was so tight that it was cutting the circulation to her fingers as Mark towered over the two men who were now sprawled across the floor, unconscious and bloodied. She watched the entire fight but she still couldn’t fathom how one man managed to take down two.

Mark leaned down and grabbed one the men by the collar, he wasn’t responsive but his chest was moving with each pained breath. Mark hooked his arms under the man’s armpit before looking past her, “Mind helping, duchess? Those security cameras run on a 10-second rotation and it’s about to point back here and it won’t look good for either of us.” 

Her eyes darted to the camera hung from the side of her building and watched it move a fraction, inching closer to their direction. Scrambling, she ran over to him, hands shaking as she struggled to balance on her heels while lifting the man by the ankles, grunting as they carried him over to Mark’s car. 

Heiran’s lips parted in shock as Mark pressed a button on his keys which lifted the truck of his car up, “We’re taking him with us?”

“Both of them. On three, ready?” He said before counting quickly under his breath. She tossed the man in, gulping at the groan the man let out. 

It was like the shock drained the rationality from her system because she was moving on autopilot as she followed him to the other man and did the same, tossing him in before Mark slammed the trunk shut. 

Her gaze was unfocused and she had a gentle sway to her stance as she took everything in, felt like it took hours but in reality barely minutes had passed. “Can they breathe in there?” 

“Why do you care? They were trying to drag you into their car and do who knows what to you?” He asked, exasperated. 

She frowned, “Well, I don’t want to be implicated in their murder. I have enough crimes I’m running from as it is.” 

“They have enough oxygen until I get them back to my place.” He deadpanned.

She looked at him nervously, “What are you going to do to them?”

“Talk.” 

There was no holding back the snort that left her, “In your abandoned, creepy apartment complex?”

“Precisely.” He narrowed his eyes at the dazed nature of her presence and stepped closer to her, “You good?”

“That’s a stupid question.” Sh e breathed out while brushing her fingers against her sore wrists.

He frowned at the action and reached for her arm to get a better look at the damage. She froze and let him tug her sleeve up before inspecting the reddened skin. “Huh.” 

A shiver ran up her spine unintentionally when he thumbed the skin curiously, a shiver, unlike the one when those men said her name, “What?”

“Nothing.” He said before dropping his hand, “Ready to go?”

She crossed her arms over her chest before nodding, she walked to the passenger side when she froze by the back doors, pressing her face against the window as she stared at the backseat in disbelief, “Mark?”

He raised his eyes over the hood of the car at the sound of her voice hissing through her clenched teeth, “Yeah?”

“Why the fuck didn’t you tell me that my daughter was here?” She seethed. 

He blinked before leaning by the window, peering inside where Lucy sat, wearing a sweater three times her size with the hood up and the strings pulled tight so that her entire face vanished except the tip of her nose. “Oh, yeah. Whoops.”

The shock was nonstop today, “Is she…wearing your sweater?” 

No wonder he was in a t-shirt.

He shrugged, continuing to watch the little girl sit motionless in his backseat, drowned in his clothing. “It was one of your rules, that she didn’t witness guns or violence, I had no other way to make sure she wasn’t watching.”

It was bizarre, imagining the conversation between the two of them as he convinced her daughter to put on the sweater before carefully pulling the hood up and tying the strings together, instructing her not to remove it before approaching Heiran and the men.

She watched him as he stared at Lucy, a fraction of her anger wavering, “I don’t want us to be driving around with my daughter in the backseat and two men in the trunk.”

“She won’t even notice.”

She stared at him incredulously, “Are you kidding me?”

Mark was tired and his hands were sore, “We don’t have very many options at this point. Come on, we need to leave before someone notices us and their abandoned car. Your house isn't very far and I'm pretty sure she passed out.” 

It was absolute, utter, absurdity as she got into his car and buckled herself in. It was like her mind detached from the rest of her body and was floating up, up, up as Mark ripped out of the parking lot and on the highway. She could barely feel the motion sickness when he wove in and out of traffic with the same precision he used when fighting. 

She had always assumed he’d use guns, something that put distance between him and his victims, it would still be horrifying but there was something not as brutal or vicious as the sound of his bare hands breaking human bones.

“Mom?”

Her breath caught and she immediately turned in her seat to watch Lucy struggle with Mark’s sweater until she finally managed to loosen the ties and push the hood down. Heiran’s lips curved up at Lucy’s fingers barely poking from the sleeves. She looked so tiny, so precious, Heiran wanted to climb to the back and squeeze her tight, cuddling until they both fell asleep.

Lucy rubbed her eyes and Heiran melted at the sight, “Did you sleep, sunshine?”

Lucy yawned before nodding, her voice groggy, “Mark’s sweater is warm. It’s like a blanket.”

“Go back to sleep, we’re almost home, okay?” Heiran cooed. 

Mark didn’t realize he was holding his breath, he felt his stomach churn and his palms grow warm at the utter sound of love that left Heiran’s lips. His eyes fell on the rearview mirror and he watched her gently brush strands of Lucy’s hair out of her face, tucking it into his sweater. He wasn't sure his own hands were capable of that kind of gentleness. 

“Mom, I like Mark again.” Lucy declared sleepily. 

Heiran glanced over at Mark whose face was set into a stone-cold look of impassivity as he grunted, “Great.”

Her lips twitched, he wondered why she always seemed so gleeful at the lack of emotion he showed her daughter. 

“That’s nice, sunshine.” She said vaguely before turning back to face the road when Mark hit a particularly rough pothole. 

He winced and Heiran held her breath when a loud thump and groan came from the trunk. 

“What was that noise?” Lucy asked. 

Mark could see how Heiran had stopped moving, her body rigid at the question, so he intervened, “I have some boxes in the back, they’re just knocking around.” 

Another groan vibrated out but Mark acted faster, he turned on the radio, raising the volume a few notches louder than comfortable and just continued driving like it was a regular night. He was so unfazed, she wondered how often he found himself doing something like this. 

Lying easily in the face of something horrifically criminal. 

Her leg wouldn’t stop bouncing, nerves frayed as if she was waiting for Lucy, a 10-year child, to come to the conclusion that there were half-conscious men locked up right behind her. 

Mark glanced at her legs before slowly reaching out and placing his palm over her knee, stopping her. “You’re fine.”

She took a sharp breath in and was about to brush him off when she looked down and noticed at the reddened scratches on his knuckles. He waited for her to push his hand away or mumble under her breath and it perplexed him when she did none of those things. She just lifted her head, slouched in her seat and let him keep his warm hand on her leg for the rest of the drive.

“Did you know that Picasso was once the main suspect when the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre?” She asked him softly. 

Mark blinked at the abrupt question before looking over at her from the side of his eye, “Uh…no, I didn’t.” 

She just nodded enthusiastically, “Some guy told the Paris journal that Picasso owned sculptures that were stolen from the Louvre so he probably stole the Mona Lisa too. Turns out that the guy who exposed him was the one who stole the pieces and sold them to an oblivious Picasso, so he returned the pieces and the police couldn’t find a connection to Picasso and the thefts so they let him go.”

Mark’s thumb subconsciously stroked gentle circles on her knee, increasing and decreasing the pressure as if to calm her, “Did they find the Mona Lisa?”

“Yeah, like a few years later, an employee of the museum had stolen it.” She replied.

"Cool." 

"Yeah, I thought so."

"Does it remind you of the situation you're in?" He asked a minute later. 

She shrugged as he pulled up to the gates of her house. "I guess. Sorta. The only difference is that Picasso didn't know that he was buying stolen art. When he found out, he gave it back, he did the right thing in the end. It wasn't like he was helping the guy who conned him avoid the cops."

He parked in front of the house, pulling his hand off her knee so she could push the door open. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

He watched through the rearview mirror as she met eyes with him quickly and then unbuckled Lucy in the backseat. 

She held her close and shifted when her daughter, her little ball of sunshine, smelled exactly of Mark. It made her uncomfortable that Lucy no longer smelled like her home and her mother. She felt like a wild animal wanting to imprint on her young, territorial at the scent of another. 

Or maybe just the scent of Mark that was woodsy and warm, like burnt firewood, discomforted her, “Take your sweater back.”

He leaned across the passenger seat and look up at her through the cracked window. “She’s asleep, it’s whatever. I gotta go now anyways, dumb and dumber don’t have that much oxygen left.”

“Oh…okay, I’ll bring it to you tomorrow.” She replied lamely, she would never get used to having mundane conversations with him.

He eyed Lucy who was clinging onto her for dear life. “You gonna be okay alone after tonight?”

“Are you going to offer to take my guest room, again?”

“You’ve seen my new place, your guest room would be like a palace.”

“I’ll be fine, see you tomorrow.”

He grinned and it was curious how despite beating two men to a near pulp, he didn’t look like an animal this time.

“Goodnight, duchess.” 

\-----

Waking up in a room you didn’t recognize was never a good thing.

He felt pain ringing through his bones, he never knew that you could feel such hurt through every single fiber of your being. 

Fuck why was his nose throbbing?

He tried to reach up to touch it when he felt something tight around his skin, restraining his hands.

Opening his eyes, he looked down at his wrists, gulping at the rough rope used to bind his wrists.

“What the fuck?”

He turned his head, eyes wide as he stared at his partner who was bound to a chair next to him, but unlike him, his arms were tied behind his back.

“Where are we?”

He shook his head while looking around what seemed like an abandoned lobby, “No idea, I just remember going after the girl and then…”

“And then Mark Tuan.” His partner finished in a whisper. 

His eyes were frantic as he began pulling on the ropes, even his ankles were bound, “We need to get out of here, now.”

“Aw, so soon? We didn’t even get to talk.”

Their blood ran ice cold at the hollow voice that ricocheted off the corners of the walls as Mark stepped out from the shadows and into the light. “And you're not going anywhere until we do.”

“Let us go! You think DS is gonna take nicely to you taking us hostage?”

Mark looked positively bored, “You think I give a fuck what DS thinks?”

“So it’s true. Your boss assigned her to you. Someone with your skill reduced to an adult babysitter, that’s a shame.”

Mark chuckled, “Not really helping your case, friend.”

“She’s the one that fucked up though, isn’t she? She didn’t clean your money properly, she’s the one that sent the cops after our guy and she’s the one we want. Why protect someone so incompetent? Can’t really be helping your business to keep her.” He reasoned. "Let us do the dirty work of getting rid of her."

Mark stood and picked his gun off the counter, “I guess we’ll be moving faster than I expected.”

“Dude, come on, are you fucking her? Is that it? Look, I get it, but the pussy can’t be that good that you’re willing to play house with her and her kid when you could have DS aligning with Got7.” 

His partner tensed at the obvious provocation and tried to jump in, “All we’re saying is that DS can strike a deal with you. Give us the girl and we’ll break ties, we’ll even give up some territory. We won’t come after yo—fuck!”

His scream was three octaves higher when Mark shot the man next seated next to him without blinking. The man’s body fell backward, still tied to the chair, blood gushing out of the clean bullet hole in the centre of his forehead. 

Mark sighed, as if disappointed, “I really hate when people call me dude.”

The other man kept his gaze forward, terrified to look over and see his partner’s dead body. Mark clicked his tongue and moved his gaze over to the other man, “If you think I’d disobey a directive and betray my gang just to make your life easier, you must be fucked. I don’t care about allying with DS and I sure as hell don’t give a flying fuck if your crew comes after me in retaliation, especially if they all fight like the two of you.”

Mark blinked lazily, ignoring the screams and curses that came out of him when he accidentally glanced over at the dead heap next to him.

“I’m sorry. You don’t need to take the deal, just don’t kill me. I’m just doing what I'm told, following directives, just like you are.”

Mark smiled, setting the gun down on the floor next to his feet, “Surprisingly, I won’t.”

“Wh-What? Really? Why?” He rasped, body still trembling. Mark was known for a lot of things, mercy was never one of them.

Mark took pride in his quaking, it meant he was scared of him. 

And he should be. 

“Well, someone needs to go back and tell DS what I did. He should know what happens when you come after her. He should remember what it’s like to piss me off.”

He watched Mark pick up a knife and frowned, “I-I thought you weren’t going to kill me.”

“I’m not, but I can do a lot without actually killing you.” He crouched down in front of the man, his blade dangling between his fingers, “Because you see, you hurt her wrists.”

Mark used his free hand to lift the man’s bound ones and inspected them before lifting his wolfish gaze and tilting his head.

“Now I’m gonna have to hurt yours.”


	8. Eighth

“How’s is it going, so far?”

Mark stood behind his Boss, locked up in his grand office. Not many have stepped foot into this office and walked out alive, Mark was the exception, he always was. “Good sir, no direct threats, although the auditor has been giving her a hard time. It's making her really anxious.”

“Well fix it, that auditor is a threat to her and that means it’s a threat to us.” He barked.

Mark tensed his jaw, “I’ve had some things in the works, I expect he won’t be around for too much longer. We’ve been working on derailing the investigation and getting everything tossed out.”

His Boss frowned, his eyes passing over Mark’s face quickly, “Aren’t there faster, more foolproof methods you could use?”

“He’s too important for me to get rid of him. Too many people would notice and it would bring too much attention. I wouldn’t risk it.” Mark said slowly, it was rare to see his Boss so antsy. 

“Fine, I’ll let you take lead but speed it along. I don’t need her in anyone’s sights for long or else I’ll have to get involved myself and I really don’t want to have to do that.”

Mark hid his surprise as he watched him pace. He had never seen his Boss offering to get his own hands dirty, he usually left that up to everyone else.

Up to Mark.

“Yes sir.”

“I’ve made mistakes, Mark, I’m going to make up for them.” He said lowly.

Mark shifted on his heels, this was uncomfortable, he didn't want to be part of the complex father-daughter relationship that existed between him and Heiran. He wasn't a fan of family drama.

“She likes art, sir.”

He turned and looked at Mark, stunned, “Art?”

“Like big fancy paintings. She has them all over her house.”

His Boss stared at him like he had suggested quitting and becoming a cop. It dawned on Mark in that moment that the domineering, intimidating man before him never had to buy his daughter a present or find out what sort of things she liked. 

He never had to get to know her. 

“I think she’d like something like that.” 

Her father looked away, his brows set in a deep frown and he stared out the window, “I want to visit her, speak to her, I need her to give me another chance, show her I’ve changed. I need her to trust me again.”

“It might be hard sir, she doesn’t ask much about you, she still doesn’t entirely care for me either. She’s not really warming up to any of us.”

“She’s my daughter, Mark.”

“I would never tell you what to do sir, but I think you should take it slow, if you come on too strong, it’ll freak her out. She won't be willing to open up.”

He turned, his eyes surveying the young man in front of him before speaking, “What would you do if you were me?”

Mark’s eyes widened, all the years he spent by his Boss’s side, he had never been asked his opinion, “Sir?”

“You know I don’t usually ask for help, but I’m doing it now. What would you do if you had to win back someone?”

He wondered what his Boss would do with his answer. Mark never really had to win anyone back before, either they stayed in his life or they never came back, “She doesn’t trust you, sir, maybe try showing her that she can trust you, that you care about her as a person…that you can be there for her when she needs you. Show her, actions speak louder don’t they?”

His Boss mulled over the words before turning away in silent dismissal, "I can do that." 

\-----

“Explain this to me again so I can fully understand.”

Heiran rolled her eyes as she leaned back in her chair and glared at Mark who was seated on the couch in her office.

“It’s not a complicated concept. I didn’t send the email.” She said blankly.

“So that little math nerd is still skulking around here?” He muttered.

She huffed before nodding, “Yes, but I have a plan.”

“Is it a good one?” He asked with a quirked brow.

“I have a plan.” 

He rolled his eyes with a scoff, “Well, let’s hear it, McGyver.”

“I’m going to steal his phone, look through his emails and find actual proof that he’s here on a vendetta.” 

He stared at the proud grin she shot his way. Everything always sounded so straight forward and easy coming from her, “His phone? You mean the one in the blue case that he literally never lets go of? _You’re_ going to steal that?”

“I’m not inept. I can swipe a phone.” She said blithely. 

He tilted his head back, comfortably slouched against her couch as if he was seated on a throne and not her leather couch. “So you won’t send an email but you’ll lift a smartphone. Interesting.” 

She narrowed her eyes at him, rolling her jaw, “I’m not stealing it, I’m going to put it back before he notices.”

“How are you even going to steal it in the first place?”

“That’s why I wanted your help. If there’s something shady on it, he won’t just hand it to me, even if I came up with a believable excuse. I have a few plans, but do you have any suggestions?”

“Oh, I get to help now? Goody.” He deadpanned.

She stood and a slow smile spread up his lips when she moved around her desk to stand in front of him. 

He was missing those legs.

“Yes, you get to help because you’re the only one in this room that’s a criminal.”

“I’m blushing, I’ve always been weak for flattery.” As he stood to meet her halfway. 

She narrowed her eyes at him, wishing they were sharp enough to stab him, “Seriously, I need ideas."

“Get the one person he seems to waste time on to do it.” 

He nodded in the direction of her door and she followed it until her eyes landed on Eun, “Absolutely not.”

“Come on, she doesn’t have to debase herself but she could flirt a little, offer to put her number in or something and then install spyware.”

“Fantastic idea. I’m sure you have this super simple, totally undetectable quickly downloadable software on hand?” She fired back.

He glared at her, “Well maybe don’t spring a scheme on me the morning of.”

“Regardless, I’m not whoring her out.” She waved him off.

“Then what’s your grand plan?”

“Sweat it out of him. We’re having an all-hands meeting in the conference room and I can control the thermostat from my phone, he’ll take his blazer off and you will slip it out.” She said with a flourish. 

“You really made this harder on yourself than you need to.” Mark muttered.

Heiran smiled sweetly before reaching out and tickling the bottom of Mark's chin with her fingertips like he was a dog, "Just be a good boy and do your part."

\-----

He wasn't taking his blazer off.

She had sweat dripping down her neck and everyone else was loosening their ties and fanning their faces but Choi _fucking_ Youngjae was just twirling his pen with his fingers, unbothered that the conference room had become a sauna in the span of 5 minutes. She tried to focus on the questions that the shareholders were asking her but it was hard not to just gape at Youngjae. 

Then she made the mistake of looking toward the door at Mark who was nearly keeling over laughing on the other side of the glass. Pissed, she picked up her phone and quickly typed out a text and sent it to him. 

**To Mark: Get in here and do something**

She watched him check his phone before his fingers flew over the keys and her phone pinged with a reply.

**From Mark: Whatever you say, Duchess**

Sighing and opening the door, Mark poked his head in and tried to muster up his best customer service smile, "Do you need me to refill the water?"

Heiran's eyes darted to the half-empty jug sitting on the table before nodding, "Yeah that would be great."

"Why is it so fucking hot in here?" Kevin asked. 

She tried to look embarrassed, "Sorry again, the heater has been on the fritz the whole day, maintenance will be here soon."

Mark reached over Youngjae's shoulder and clumsily knocked the entire jug over so that it drenched his blazer. Heiran's jaw dropped as she watched Youngjae leap to his feet with a shout. Mark was a lot of things, clumsy was not one of them. 

Mark looked completely innocent as he fussed over Youngjae, "Oh no! I'm so sorry! I'm such an idiot! Here, give me your blazer, I'll go dry it."

Heiran couldn't contain the giddiness inside her as she watched Youngjae mutter under his breath while stripping out of his blazer and handing it off to Mark without a second thought. Mark apologized once before turning to the door, his grip tight on the coat. 

She should've known it was too good to be true.

"Oh, wait, hang on." Youngjae called. 

Mark froze as Youngjae jogged over to him and patted down his blazer before reaching into a pocket and pulling out his cellphone, "Almost forgot this." 

Mark gave him a tensed smile and shot a look at Heiran who was completely disappointed. Once Youngjae took a seat, the meeting resumed and Mark had no choice to storm out of the conference room and refrain from chucking the little twerp's jacket out the 16th story window. 

“Anyways, Heiran, I’d like an update on SmartLogic. I need to know that this audit isn’t making them nervous. I haven’t heard anything from you since we last spoke.” Kevin said. 

Heiran stared at him blankly, trying to recover from the plan failing before she sat up straighter, “Nothing much has changed, our conversations have been the same as they were before, we’re still trying to get them to open up to the idea.”

“Jesus.” Kevin muttered. 

Youngjae tilted his head and addressed Kevin, “Have you not spoken with anyone from SmartLogic yourself?”

“No, Heiran built a good relationship with them so I let her take lead, I figured that they’d trust her.” His voice curled in annoyance and she resisted the urge to roll her eyes. 

He ‘let’ her, as if GOT7 would’ve let SmartLogic get anywhere near him. What a joke. 

Every man in this building was a joke. 

“Maybe we should give them a call, see what they have to say straight from the horses' mouth.”

Heiran froze, her eyes shooting daggers over at Youngjae with a type of utter hatred she couldn’t put into words. How did he always know what to say to screw her over? It was like he could read her mind and do the exact opposite of what she wanted.

“That’s a great idea, Youngjae! Heiran, can you coordinate that?” Kevin asked.

She clenched her teeth and stood, smoothing her palms over her tan Balenciaga skirt, “Of course, let me step outside and get my assistant to conference her in.”

Mark was standing by the door at attention when she walked in, trying to maintain composure although the speed of her stride was giving her away, "Listen, I'm so--"

“Hey.” She whispered, closing the door behind her, “Get Yun—Yeonhee on the phone.”

He blinked at her before snorting. "I'd rather stick toothpicks in my eyeballs."

She looked livid, “I’m not joking. They want to talk to a representative from SmartLogic, send her a text warning her. I’m going to put her on speaker.”

Concern flickered through his eyes as he looked over her face while pulling this phone out, “This is risky.”

“I know, so promise her the most amazing sex of her life or something, just make sure she doesn’t blow this for me.”

His parted in stunned shock but she just grabbed a jug of water out of the fridge desk and walked back into the room, confidence back in her steps.

\-----

She held her breath the entire time.

She kept waiting for Yeonhee to break character and start making shit up to make Heiran look bad, but surprisingly, she stuck to the message. She was quick on her feet, answering and deflecting questions in a way that left the men nodding in satisfaction. 

Heiran could see the way Youngjae’s shoulders had begun to deflate, he was probably disappointed in not being able to expose some sort of epic conspiracy. But whenever he asked questions about the investments and its returns, Yeonhee had answers prepped on her tongue. Heiran had to admit that she was impressed.

“Well, this was clearly informative. I think Yuna has answered all your questions, right?” Heiran said, attempting to wrap the call-up. The quicker Yeonhee was taken out of the equation, the easier she could breathe.

Kevin nodded, please, “This was very helpful, I’d love to schedule another one on one conversation.”

“I’ll look at my schedule and get back to you with a few dates.”

Heiran hoped she’d pick February 31st. 

“This surely was useful.” Youngjae spoke up, “I’m glad I got to speak with the rep of the biggest investments this company has ever done. It’s good to see where the money’s being sent and how it's being used.”

Yeonhee hummed before replying, “Actually, I just wrapped up a meeting around your area, would you like me to stop by?”

“No!” 

Everyone turned to Heiran, staring at her in shock. She swallowed the lump down her throat and her eyes darted to the door where Mark was standing, alert, looking into the room for whatever cause her loud exclamation.

Youngjae raised his brow, “No?”

She could hear the blood rushing to her head and her skin growing uncomfortably hot, “I me-mean…no, we couldn’t spring that on you so last minute.”

A beat passed and she prayed Yeonhee would take the hint and retract her offer but she just let out a light laugh, “No imposition at all, I’ll be around in half an hour, then everyone can ask me whatever questions they have in person.”

“Bu—“

“We appreciate that Yuna, we look forward to meeting you.” Youngjae said.

The goodbyes blurred by as the call ended and she could barely hear Youngjae telling everyone to reconvene in 30 minutes once Yuna arrived. She just stood, giving everyone tight smiles as they filtered out of the conference room. She didn’t even have the capacity to hate Youngjae for the smug smile he threw over his shoulder as he left. 

Mark was quick to enter the room, shutting and locking the door behind him before walking up to her, “What happened?”

She stumbled back in a daze and his hand was quick to grip her waist and pull her close, his expression darkening as he tried to get her gaze to focus on him, “Come on, what happened?”

“She’s coming here.”

“Wh—fuck, are you serious?”

She dropped her head into her hands and groaned weakly, “She’s doing this on purpose, just to piss me off.”

“It’ll be fine, she might be petty but this is her job, she’s good at it. She won’t do anything to jeopardize GOT7. She just wants to make you sweat, she gets a kick out of it.”

She lifted her head and scowled at him, “I thought I told you to offer her good sex.”

“I assumed you were joking, didn’t think you wanted me whoring myself out.” He deadpanned.

She groaned again but this time it morphed into a laugh before she tilted her head up at him, “What if they ask her hard questions?”

“Don’t worry, she’s good on her feet.”

She chewed on her lip, “You really trust her?”

He took a deep breath before sighing, “Yeah, I trust her, I trust the people in GOT7. I know that’s hard for you to do, but you don’t have much choice now. These are people that would die for the cause.”

“Right.” She muttered quietly to herself.

“Don’t stress.”

She scoffed, rolling her eyes at how easy he made it sound. He grinned in response, squeezing the side of her waist gently, causing her to jerk her head up, it was the first time she noticed his grip. Her eyes were wide and her throat dry. He was nice to look at when he smiled, it made him look younger, warmer…more domestic. 

A gentle knock on the door broke whatever hold that was on Mark and he quickly dropped his hand and stepped away from her before they both looked over at Eun who bowed on the other side of the door before pointing at Yeonhee who was seated in the waiting room frowning at the two of them.

Heiran furrowed her brows at the sight, “Who’s the guy sitting next to her?”

She looked over at Mark who had his eyes closed and was staring up at the ceiling in defeat, “Fuck me.”

\-----

“You are my role model.”

She learnt that his name was Jinyoung, Mark knew him well, and that he created the fake SmartLogic program. 

And apparently a big fan of hers.

He was wearing thick black-rimmed glasses and a neat buttoned up shirt tucked harmlessly into pair of slacks. He had a messenger bag slung over his shoulder and a beaming grin across his face. Jinyoung looked exactly like a budding developer who graduated with a computer science degree.

Not the criminal that he actually was.

“Now isn’t the time, Jinyoung.” Mark muttered. 

Heiran’s lips quirked, “I appreciate it, though.”

A light ignited in his eyes as he stepped closer to her, pupils glittering. It was so hard for her to remember that he was someone who ran in the same circle as her father and Mark. He seemed so kind and gentle. “I’m serious. I started getting into technology when I read your dissertation for your Masters about how the technology industry is a sleeping giant ready to wake.”

She raised her brows, “That’s impressive, I thought the only people who read my dissertation were my supervisors and the thesis committee."

“I read that you predicted that the fashion industry was going to take a dive with a lot of fast fashion stores filing bankruptcy, is that true?” He asked. 

She blinked at him,”O-Oh, well yes. Despite the almost horrific labor practices, the fast fashion trend isn’t sustainable in a market that changes so frequently without maintaining a core customer base, not to mention the gross environmental impa—“

“Are you two fucking kidding me, right now?” Yeonhee hissed. 

Jinyoung glared at her, “You’re being rude.”

“And you're being a little prick, the only reason I brought you with me is because you _begged_ me to, can you at least try to focus?” She fired back. 

Mark let out a long breath, already exhausted. While his and Yeonhee’s relationship was problematic in a quiet way, hers and Jinyoung’s was always problematic in a yelling match kind of way.

“Stop acting like kids. All those people are going to be back here any minute now. Can we please agree on a plan?” Mark said sternly. 

Heiran felt nerves itch at her as she addressed the small group, “We need to get our hands on Youngjae’s phone. I’ll introduce you to him when he gets here. There has to be something on his phone that proves that he is coming after us with an ulterior motive. Once we get his phone, we need to find a way to gain access to it remotely and then we need to return it back into his jacket before he notices.”

“And we need to do this without him or any of the other men at the table noticing.” Mark added.

Yeonhee looked appalled, “Why don’t I also make myself levitate? Or maybe I’ll saw a woman in half since apparently you’re asking us to perform a fucking magic trick.” 

Mark was about to bark an order when Heiran interjected, “Listen, it’s not ideal, but we don’t have many other options, if we want this entire investigation to end, we need to find something to implicate him.” 

“And all while answering their dumbass questions.” Yeonhee muttered. 

She smiled in a way that she hoped looked friendly. “I need the help.”

Mark watched her in wrapt attention, he wondered if this was how she got people to do what she wanted. She could be aggressive and domineering when she needed to be, but she knew how to switch it on a dime; to come off as humble and vulnerable.

It was fascinating. 

She knew how to play people without hurting them. 

“Fine.” Yeonhee grumbled. “But I’m not doing this because I want to help you, I’m doing this because both your dumbasses let it get this far in the first place.”

Heiran looked relieved, “Thank you, Yeonhee.” 

Yeonhee rolled her eyes and turned away, “Whatever.” 

Heiran looked over at Mark nervously but he just gave her a firm nod and it was upsetting how such a simple gesture had reassured her enough that when Eun knocked on the door, Youngjae standing right next to her, she wasn’t fazed.

“Okay folks, here we go.”

\-----

“This all sounds like a lot of big claims, but how does anyone know that the software even works?”

Heiran couldn’t stop staring at Youngjae with a look of utter disdain. The entire meeting was just him asking specific, pointed questions at Yeonhee and Jinyoung of the validity of their equipment and the financial return. It was like seeing the two of them in person gave him his second wind.

Even Kevin, the guy whose company was trying to buy this software, didn’t have as many questions as Youngjae. She could even see the sideways glances everyone was giving Youngjae every time he spoke.

What the fuck was he even in this meeting for? He was an auditor, he should be looking over financial statements, not grilling Jinyoung and Yeonhee on the equipment. 

“I’ve seen it working before as has many of their customers. Their business wouldn’t even exist if the software didn’t work.” Heiran cut in, a sickly smile gracing her face.

Youngjae returned the smile, “And as good as I’m sure your word is, I’d like to see it myself. Gentlemen, do you agree?”

A round of agreements came out in grumbles and grunts and Heiran curled her fingers into fists on her lap as she turned to look at Jinyoung in a panic. The software wasn’t real and if they noticed it, this entire thing would be blown. He pushed his glasses further up his nose before grinning. 

“That’s no problem.” He stood with his laptop and walked around to Youngjae’s side of the table. He set his laptop on the table and leaned over Youngjae’s shoulder, pointing at his screen as he explain technical jargon in the same distractingly complicating way that Yuna had used when she pitched the software to her. 

It made sense now that she saw it from the other side, the confidence and ease in the way that he spoke garnered a sense of trust from people who weren’t smart enough to understand how the technology wasn’t real.

She must’ve been so easy for them to trick.

She was pulled out of her thoughts as she watched his hand fall dangerously close to Youngjae’s pocket. She couldn’t see any further from her side of the table but she crossed her fingers that he managed to pluck the phone right out of his coat. 

But when he finished his explanation and walked back to his seat, her heart sank when his hands were empty aside from his laptop. 

No, there was no way that this was going to be an entire failure. She couldn’t leave this meeting with nothing. 

Kevin leaned forward, addressing Yeonhee, “I know that with the merger, you’ve been a bit cautious about moving forward with Heiran. I know that she can be hard to read, but I want to make sure I can smooth over any issues that she wasn’t able to.”

Heiran clenched her jaw but stayed silent as he continued to speak, “Your company and your software are very valuable and we want to make sure you’re happy and your trust the process. I want to make sure you don’t have any reservations with Heiran or the work that she does. We love the idea of having you onboard.”

“Sir, I think you are confused.” Yeonhee said calmly, “It’s not Heiran that I’m concerned with. I have my reservations about _you_.”

Everyone gaped at Yeonhee’s finger boldly pointing at him, “I trust Heiran with SmartLogic because she’s the only person I’ve met so far that actually has the mind of a businesswoman. Your company just mindlessly acquires new talent to keep a hold on your monopoly. There’s no amount of money or power in this world that would convince me to sell to you and that’s not Heiran’s fault. It’s yours.”

Heiran’s eyes were wide as she stared at Yeonhee who had crossed her arms indignantly in the faces of the dumbstruck men, “Yuna…”

Jinyoung coughed quickly into his palm and Yuna slid her hands under the table before standing. Everyone watched her and Jinyoung gather their belongings and walk to the door; not before leaning over Yougjae’s shoulder, “Never send a man to do a woman’s job.”

Heiran found herself biting back a smile despite the failure to retrieve Youngjae’s phone. That was the Yuna that she had so strongly admired, the one bold enough to put men in their place. “Well, it seems that Yuna and SmartLogic have made their stance clear. I’m sure this will make things awkward for you, especially if you blow up the merger.”

Kevin looked furious but she couldn’t care less, she just smiled. 

“Have a nice day, gentlemen.”

\-----

The second that all the men left, Mark materialized by her side and she nearly forgot he was there. He had been silently watching their entire meeting from the little glass window by the door.

“You good?” He asked quietly.

She sighed and leaned against the conference room table while pressing her wrists against her eyes, “Not really. The plan was a bust. I was stupid to think it would work. Now we have nothing”

“I wouldn’t say _nothing_ , I guess.” Yeonhee mumbled as she walked towards them. 

She looked up, confused “What do you mean?”

“Ta-dah!” Jinyoung sung, showing her his laptop.

She frowned and squinted her eyes, “What am I looking at?”

“This is his entire phone, mirrored on my laptop.” He said proudly.

Her hand shot out to grip his arm, “Shut up. Are you serious?”

“Yup, it’s all here. _Thousands_ of emails and texts, all his cloud accounts, I even have access to his company’s database servers. This man carries his entire career on this thing.” He said, giddiness thrumming through him. 

The same feeling rushed through Heiran as she pulled his arm to bring him closer to her, “Oh my god. I can’t believe you did this. Show me everything, I want to see it all.” 

Jinyoung began chattering excitedly to her, “I can create a program that will automatically filter through everything on his phone and look for whatever keywords you want, it’ll make it go faster since he has so much shit on here. It might take some time but you’ll have everything he ever put on here, even if he deleted it.”

“That is amazing.” She turned to look at him, “You’re incredible at this. Did you teach yourself?”

Jinyoung’s bright smile faltered a bit as he shrugged, “I went to college for it for a bit but couldn’t afford it. Taught myself the rest and once I had enough money for tuition, I knew more than any professor could ever teach me.”

“Oh.” She said softly, her heart-tugging a bit. His story was so similar to hers except that she found a way to scrape together the money to finish school. It made her wonder what story Mark had for what ended him up with GOT7. “Well, I’m grateful you’re this good. There has to be some dirt in here.” 

“Honestly, that is the biggest compliment I’ve ever heard in my life and I will never forget this day for as long as I live.” He said with a straight face.

She blinked at him, “O-Oh…okay.”

“You’re my hero.” He whispered. 

Heiran bit down a smile and patted his arm, “Jinyoung?”

“Yes?”

“Enough.” 

\-----

“Hey.”

Mark nodded but kept his eyes on Heiran and Jinyoung who were crowded around a laptop. 

“Mark.” 

He glanced slowly at Yeonhee who was pulling her glasses off, “What is it?”

“Can we talk?” Annoyance dripping off her tone. 

He looked over at Heiran once more, his eyes scanning the room for an undetected threat before following Yeonhee out of the room, closing the door behind him. It made him uneasy leaving her alone even with Jinyoung. 

Heiran looked up at the sound of the door closing and stared at Mark who was leaning against Eun’s vacant desk, arms crossed with a frown on his lips as he spoke to Yeonhee. 

“Trust me, you don’t want to open that can of worms.”

She turned to Jinyoung who had a small smile on his face, “I’m his friend and I actually don’t mind Yeonhee’s presence from time to time but the two of them together might just be the most volatile duo I’ve ever seen.” 

“What do you mean?” She said, keeping her tone even.

Jinyoung shook his head as he looked over at Yeonhee and Mark, “She likes him too much, he doesn’t like her enough and they keep hooking up despite knowing that about each other. Just goes downhill from there.”

“Oh.”

He snorted, “It’s no wonder she’s jealous of you.”

“That’s a load of crap.” She let out an ugly laugh, “There’s nothing to be jealous about and that girl is smart enough to know that."

“She doesn’t like the fact that Mark cares about you more than he ever did for her.”

“Because it’s his job.” She fired back.

“Not in her eyes.” Jinyoung said quietly, “Hell, not even in my eyes. Somewhere inside him, even a tiny molecular part of him actually cares about your wellbeing and safety. Maybe it’s because he’s _that_ loyal to your dad or because he just doesn’t want to see you hurt.”

“Well, it doesn’t matter. It’s none of my business, anyways.” She said quickly.

“It’s funny because you almost sound like you care.”

\-----

“Why did you offer to come here in person?” Mark muttered, his gaze heavy.

Yeonhee curled her fingers into fists, “I asked you out here so that _I_ could talk to _you_.” 

“Yeonhee, you just showed yours and Jinyoung’s face to that auditor creep and all those other men. Do you know how dangerous that is? We can’t have that many important people knowing what members of GOT7 look like. It’s already a risk that they know me. What the hell were you thinking?” He barked.

She scoffed, “Why are you acting mad now? You were fine with it before.”

“I didn’t want her freaking out, if I looked worried, then she’d lose her mind.” He hissed. 

“Go on a date with me.”

His face immediately fell and nearly softened, his previous anger tempering down, “Please don’t do this.” 

“Why not?” She spat back. “Why is it so hard to go on a date with me? To just get dinner together without it ending in sex?”

“Because that’s not what I want, and I’ve always been upfront about that with you. If this thing we have right now makes you uncomfortable, I respect that and we can end it, but I can’t do anything more.” He said quietly. 

She felt her anger begin to grow, “Would you date Heiran?”

“No.” 

She clicked her tongue, “Answering that fast is almost worse than not answering at all.” 

“She’s our Boss’s daughter. She’s my assignment. I answered fast because there’s only one answer and that’s _no_.” He said.

“What if she wasn’t any of that? What if she was just some nice businesswoman with no connection to us?” She stepped closer to him, tipping her head.

“The answer is the same and I’m done having this conversation with you.” He pushed himself off the desk and went for the door.

“You know, I guess you’re right. I think I’ve been looking at this wrong. I don’t think I have anything to worry about at all when it comes to the two of you.”

He glanced at her over his shoulder, eyeing her cautiously, “What does that mean?”

“It means that even if you were madly in love with her, she’d never date someone like you. Someone who kills for a living. Someone who helped ruin her life and put her kid in danger. You’d be lucky if she comes out of this entire mess not hating you.”

Mark just stared at her, his mind racing to sort through the emotions that she just flung at him and compartmentalize them in a way that made them easier to digest and deal with. 

It didn’t work. 

Maybe because she was right. 

Instead, he just looked away and Yeonhee felt her gut churn at how he almost seemed defeated. She wanted him to get heated, angry; to fire back at her with sharper sarcasm. That was the best way to get him riled. This was so much worse, she had taken it too far and it almost felt like she had hurt him. 

“Ma—“

"Good work today, I’ll tell the Boss that you and Jinyoung really helped her out.” He said calmly. 

She gulped and stepped toward him, arm stretched out, “Wait, Mark…”

He turned and opened the door, “Go home, Yeonhee.” 

\-----

“I’m sorry.” 

Heiran almost thought that she heard Mark wrong when they were alone in his car. He had spent the entire drive murderously quiet, a type of quiet that felt different than all the rest. 

She stared at him silently for an entire minute before his eyebrow twitched, “Stop looking at me.”

“I’m a little confused, but I feel like I need to savor this moment.” She mused before tilting her head, “Why are you apologizing?”

That was when she noticed the evident frown on his face and the crease in his forehead, “I messed up. I didn’t get the phone the first time and then you had to sit through that entire thing. I was entirely useless.”

“I still don’t understand why you’re apologizing.” She said. “You pointed a gun at me and made me carry unconscious men to your trunk and never once apologized. This change of heart is making me uncomfortable.” 

“I failed. I don’t ever fail, so when I do, I own up to it.” He said.

“You…what? No, you didn’t fail. What the hell are you talking about?” She said incredulously, “I gave you an impossible task. Something I couldn’t even do myself. You didn’t fail and we got access to his phone, at the end of the day, that’s all that matters.”

“But I—“

“Jinyoung will find dirt on Youngjae, I will email his boss, the investigation will be put on hold and it’ll all be fine, no one will get hurt. That’s all I care about. That’s all I want to think about.” She said.

Mark tapped his fingers against the wheel before speaking, “Thank you, I guess.”

She looked over at him and found herself softening. After her brief conversation with Jinyoung, she wondered what burdens Mark carried in his past. Now that parts of his personality was bleeding through, it made her all the more curious about what made him the way that he was. 

She knew first hand what past experiences can do to a person. 

“So…” She said after a few moments of silence passed, “what kind of freaky sex did you promise Yeonhee?”

“Oh my god.” He groaned, as she burst out laughing, “Can you please leave me alone?”

She bit down on her lip and he stiffened when he caught sight of her, it was insane how pretty she was, “Was it a mommy kink?”

“I’m going to crash this car.” He deadpanned. 

The laughter wasn’t dying down and he was struggling to keep his own smile down at the sheer absurdity of the conversation. He never thought, in a million years, that the words _‘mommy kink’_ would ever leave the mouth of his Boss’s daughter. 

“You wouldn’t dare.” She said with zero threat in her tone.

His grip tightened on the wheel, “She’s pissed at me.”

“Oh…what did you do?” She didn’t know why she suddenly felt uncomfortable talking to him about this.

The same discomfort was flooding him too, “She asked me out on a date and I said I couldn’t do that.” 

“Why not?” She asked quietly.

“I’m not a big relationship guy.” He said simply.

Heiran stared at her heels, she liked this pair, the patent black leather with gold embellishments, “Does she know that?”

“Yeah, we talked about it after the first time we slept together. Even though she wants more and even though she knows that I don’t, we keep ending up together.” He wished he could take back the words before they left his mouth. 

“It’s always the guys who seem so emotionally vacant that end up with the messiest relationships.” She said, tsk-ing him with a firm head shake.

“Any advice?” He murmured. 

She raised her brows, “Really? You _want_ my advice?”

“I feel like you’re bursting at the seams to give it to me.”

She shrugged and leaned back in her seat, “I’m a single mother. I know a lot about the world but I know jack-shit about relationships. All I have to say is that maybe you’re selfish to just be sleeping with her even though you know she wants more.”

“I always tell her that if it’s too much, we can stop. I never push her, hell, I haven’t really made the first move in a while.”

“Mark…” Heiran said slowly, softly, heartbreakingly, in a way that led him to believe that she lied when she said that she knew nothing of relationships. “No matter how many times you ask her, she’ll never say she wants to stop as long as it means she gets _something_ from you, even if it’s less than she wants. She’ll never tell you that she doesn’t want to sleep with you because it’ll mean losing you all together.”

“What are you saying?”

“Fuck, I don’t know, but maybe stop being a dick by putting the responsibility on her to draw the line when things get too much. If she keeps wanting more, and if you’re sure you don’t want the same thing, _you_ need to be the one that stops it. Otherwise, you’re just benefitting off of her feelings that you know you won't return.”

He chewed on the inside of his cheek before glancing at her, “Makes me sound like a dirtbag."

“Trust me.” She said gently, “There’s nothing worse than being used by someone you love.” 

“Like your dad did?”

“Don’t spoil my mood, Mark. Something actually went my way for the first time.” She hummed, rolling the window down so that the breeze could brush over her face.

His lips quirked up as he pulled to a red light and took the chance to properly look at her. She had her eyes closed so he didn’t restrain his eyes from tracing down the slope of her nose, the curve of her lips and the apples of her cheeks. 

Beautiful wasn’t a word he used often, but it was the only one he could use to describe her. 

He thought about what Yeonhee had asked him back in the office. Heiran was the type of woman that he would’ve tried to date if he was a normal guy with a normal job and a normal past. She was the type of woman that he would’ve wanted but didn’t deserve. Someone fiery, confident and intimidating.

Her phone started to ring just as the light turned green, giving him a chance to look away as she opened her eyes.

“Hey Eun, why are you still at the office this late?”

He tuned out the conversation that carried through speakerphone as he drove up the street and into her driveway.

“Oh no, don’t worry, I already left but I just got a notification on your calendar and I wanted to remind you that you have the charity gala this weekend.”

Heiran groaned, running her hands through her hair, pulling strands out of her bun, “I completely forgot.”

“Do you want me to cancel?”

She closed her eyes for a second before sighing in resignation, “No, I need to go, thanks for the reminder, I’ll deal with it.” 

She ended the call and began gathering her coat and purse when she caught his scowl in her peripheral. She held back her smile, she was glad he was back to looking annoyed, it was better than when he sounded sad.

It was better than when he treated her like a friend. 

“Have something to say?” She murmured.

He leaned his head back against the headrest, “I’m going to have to be your date to this stupid gala, aren’t I?”

She grinned and opened her car door, “Don’t worry, my dress is stunning.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” He hissed.

She smirked and his body tensed in response at the devilish look in her eyes.

“It means no one will be looking at you.”


	9. Ninth

“Did you find anything?” 

Mark’s voice was low, a slow murmur into his phone as he stalked through the night. His hair was tucked neatly under the hood of his sweater, dressed in all black he might as well be camouflaged in the night.

He wasn’t sure what time it was, he dropped Haerin off at her hose a while ago, drove in circles until the sun had set and now he was walking down a neighbourhood that had long fallen asleep.

Except for one man.

Choi Youngjae.

Mark tracked from the other side of the street, watching him walk his dog while music was blasting in this earphone. 

Jinyoung’s sighed from the other end of the phone, “Nothing and this guy uses his phone for personal and business stuff. All his emails, texts, deleted messages, phone call, all of it. It’s clean.”

Mark frowned as he tugged the hood closer over his eyes, “Nothing? That doesn’t make sense.”

“I don’t know what to tell you, I’ve ignored all other responsibilities to scrub this phone, so you’re welcome, actually.”

Mark rolled his eyes, watching Youngjae bend down to clean up after his dog. It was so empty and quiet, if he wanted, it would’ve been easy for him to just take him out. 

“I’m not thanking you, no one asked you to do this today, you would do anything for Heiran.” He grumbled. 

Jinyoung giggled childishly that even Mark was tempted to smile, “Whatever, all I’m saying is that based on the contents of this phone, there is nothing that suggests he knows about our association with the company. It almost seems like this audit was random.”

“I don’t buy that.” Mark said, staring at Youngjae, trailing behind him, “He’s been getting involved more than a normal auditor would. He must have a second phone.” 

Jinyoung clicked his tongue, “I mean, maybe, but I really don’t think so. Oh! Also, didn’t you say you were going to be Heiran’s date for some event?”

“Why are you reminding me?” Mark hissed, his brow twitching in annoyance. 

“It’s cause Youngjae has an invite too.” Jinyoung snapped back. 

Mark stopped walking, watching Youngjae who was talking to someone on his phone. Mark frowned, “It doesn’t make sense, why the hell would any company invite an auditor to a closed event like that?” 

“He was sent an invite directly from the company. Someone wants him there and honestly, I don’t think he wants anything to do with it, he replied saying that it was unlikely he would attend.”

“Huh…”

“Doesn’t really sound like someone who is looking for dirt because of some vendetta, right?”

“No…I guess it doesn’t. Still, I want to see if he’s hiding anything else, keep digging.”

“Fine bu—“

Mark ended the call, slipping his phone away as he took in the scene before him. 

“Babe!”

A woman wearing a linen summer dress and thin cardigan wobbled up to Youngjae, who quickly darted towards her, his hand gently grazing her arm. Mark didn’t realize he was holding his breath when he noticed her hand softly smoothing over her swollen belly.

“Sweetie, what are you doing out so late? How are you feeling?” Youngjae mumbled, tenderly caressing her face.

Mark didn’t make sense of the shift in his gut when he stared at the way Youngjae was looking at this woman. The moonlight reflecting in his eyes, revealing every inch of emotion on display for anyone paying attention. How could someone who seemed so skivvy and obnoxious be capable of looking at someone with so much love?

At least, that’s what he thought it was. 

The woman beamed up at him, leaning close to steal a kiss, “I’m fine, you’re lucky I’m only 3 months in or else I would’ve been huge.” 

Youngjae smiled, not the snake-like grin he’d give Haerin, but a real smile, “I can’t wait.” 

She laughed and hooked her arm around his as they continued their stroll, their dog seemingly more alert now that a pregnant woman was near. Mark followed them for a few blocks before they turned into a cute little house with a thriving garden and a literal white picket fence. 

How perfect. 

A young couple, a little dog, a quaint house, and a pregnant wife. 

It was such a normal, pleasant life. He bet they were friends with their neighbours, attended block parties and had date nights. 

There’s no way that someone could have a life that quiet and mild-mannered while also balancing some sort of criminal scheme. If Mark couldn’t manage to do it, there was no way a small fry like Youngjae could have it all. 

Mark tugged down the lip of his cap and watched the living room lights come on. The curtains weren’t drawn so he had an unobstructed view of Youngjae turning on an old record player before pulling his wife into his arms, swaying her back and forth while she laughed. 

Utterly, unabashedly, in love.

Mark looked away, unable to watch any longer.

\-----

“Nothing?” She gaped at Mark. 

Heiran had decided to work from home the next day, too exhausted to be around her employees and colleagues who were breathing down her neck along with Youngjae. Everyone wanted answers and her superiors were getting confused and antsy that the audit was taking so long. 

And she had nothing to tell them. 

Mark leaned against the desk in her home office and stared off at the window, “No. Jinyoung’s still searching but as of now, based on what’s in his phone, there’s nothing pointing at him coming after you and your company for something personal or related to us.” 

“So…” she started softly as she stared blankly at her desk, “I guess he just started looking into us randomly, or hell, maybe something in our financials was a red flag. That’s good then, that I didn’t send that email. He’s just a guy doing his job, we can’t harm him for that.”

Mark couldn’t exactly agree, but he didn’t say it out loud, “Did you know he might be attending that gala thing?”

“What the hell? That’s weird. Why would he be invited?” She scoffed. 

He shrugged, “He said he wasn’t planning on going but he could change his mind. And I still don’t think we should write him off just yet, he could still be hiding something.”

“Why?” She breathed out. 

He blinked at her, “What do you mean?”

“Why do you think he’s still suspicious when everything we’ve seen says otherwise?” She asked.

He swallowed the lump in his throat, “People like him aren’t just in it for the greater good. No one has a life like that.”

“A life like what?” She asked curiously.

“Like…like out of a suburban fucking nightmare.” 

Heiran fell silent, turning in her chair to follow his gaze out the window, “Lots of people have a life like that, Mark. I used to. It doesn’t mean they have an ulterior motive or are secretly evil. It just means…they’re normal. Just because you’re used to everyone being a certain way doesn’t mean they actually are.” 

Mark didn’t comment, he wasn’t sure he believed her just yet, “What are you going to do about work?”

“Nothing. I’m looking through our financial records now to see if anything sticks out that Youngjae might notice and look into but other than that, I’m not going to do anything. I’m not going to search for a loophole or lie my way out of this. That’s not who I am.” 

“That’s incredibly risky and your father won’t be satisfied with that.”

“Well, I guess he can just go fuck himself then.” She said bluntly before turning back to her desk. 

Mark’s lips quirk as he glanced down at her. Her hair was tied in a ponytail and she was dressed in sweatpants and a sweater, looking more like a keen grad student than a powerful executive. Still…pretty. 

“Where’s the little troll?” He asked. 

She rolled her eyes, “Her name is Lucy and I’d ask you to keep your nicknames to yourself, I don’t need you annihilating her self-confidence at such a young age. She’s at piano lessons.”

“That’s horrifying.”

“It’s a rite of passage. She’ll take lesson until she’s 12 before she decides she hates them and wants to go into something else.” She said mindlessly as she lined her pencil up with the numbers on the sheet in front of her. 

“Is that the maternal instinct stuff people are always talking about?”

She tried to hide her smile, “Yeah, I’d like to think so. Don’t you?”

“I wouldn’t know what maternal instincts looked like.” 

She brought her gaze up to him, searching his face for an explanation but Mark wasn’t here to swap family stories and he was grateful when the doorbell rang. 

“I’ll get it.” He said, quickly exiting her office and heading to the door. He was spending too much time around her, he knew it. It is difficult to remain aloof when you spend nearly 12 hours a day with someone. 

Shaking his head, Mark reached the door, glancing at the monitor before frowning and opening it.

He stared at the man in front of him whose excited smile slowly faded when he found Mark staring him down. Mark glanced at the stuffed animal tucked under the man’s arm before looking back at his face. He seemed young but his height made up for it a little.

“Who are you?”

Mark narrowed his eyes, “You rang the doorbell, I think I should be asking you that.”

“Yuggie!” 

Mark jerked back to look up at the stairs where Heiran stood. She raced down them, nearly wiping out on the last step before pushing past Mark and launching into the man’s arms. Mark could only silently watch as he dropped the stuffed animal and spun Heiran around, both their laughter echoing throughout the house.

Heiran shrieked loudly, flailing her legs until he set her down. He squished her cheeks with his palms and shook her head side to side, “Surprise!”

“I can’t believe you’re back and you didn’t tell me. I could’ve picked you up from the airport.” Her face was lit up. 

Yugyeom grinned, letting go of her to pick up the toy, “It was so worth seeing the look on your face.”

“Come in, come in. Lucy won’t be back for a few hours but I bet she’ll be so excited to see you.” She gushed. 

Yugyeom snorted, “She better, I don’t even want to tell you the dirty looks I got trying to get this thing through customs.”

Mark continued to stay silent, following the two of them like a shadow. It was out of habit, to stand in the background, observing potential threats and apprehending them before they became viable. 

But it was the guest that finally addressed him, “Who’s that?”

Heiran looked over at Mark before reality had sunk in. Mark watched, alarmed, as her smile dropped and panic flashed over her face, “That’s Mark, my personal assistant.”

Yugyeom raised his brows, “Finally, I wondered when you’d hire one.”

He turned to Mark and held his hand out, “Nice to meet you, Mark, I’m Yugyeom, Heiran’s best and only friend.” 

Marks eyes dropped to his outstretched hand and he was about to return the gesture when he noticed something glinting by his hip when his jacket shifted. Suddenly, Heiran’s panic made a lot of sense. 

Yugyeom was a cop.

\-----

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Mark barked when Yugyeom finally left after what seemed like forever. "You didn't think this would've been helpful to know?"

Mark spent Yugyeom’s entire visit rigid, keeping the hand with Got7 tattooed on the knuckles tucked in his pocket and did his best to dodge any personal questions Yugyeom threw his way, especially after the awfully corny joke he made about Heiran hiring someone attractive to work for her. It wasn’t until he left that he felt like he could breathe. 

Heiran chewed on her lip as she paced back and forth in her kitchen,”I’m sorry, okay? I don’t really think of him as a cop, he’s just my friend from university, I forgot how complicated everything is now.”

Mark pressed his fingers into his hair, “What unit does he work in?”

“He’s a profiler, so like, not a real cop, I guess. He just bounces from unit to unit based on whoever needs his expertise.” She explained. 

At least that was good, a profiler wouldn’t have much need knowing about organized crime syndicates. But at the end of the day, he had a badge and knew people who probably wanted Got7 locked up. “Why is he back?”

“He asked for a transfer. He’s been living abroad and he’s hated it for a while, long before I knew anything about Got7.” 

Mark shook his head, “We have to be _so_ careful around him. He’ll start asking questions, especially when he sees how often I’m around you or if he pokes around your security system. If that man sees my gun or is with you when DS tries something, we’re as good as fucked.” 

“I know! I’m sure he’ll be busy readjusting and I’ll make sure he doesn’t notice anything, can you just stop raising your voice, I’m getting a migraine.” She muttered. 

Mark scoffed, "It's like you're playing a game to see how difficult you can make my life."

"I hope I'm winning." She deadpanned just as Lucy padded through the kitchen. 

Mark huffed and turned away but Heiran scurried over, her voice softening as she reached for her, "Hi sunshine, is everything okay? Did we wake you up?"

"No, can't sleep." Lucy replied before squirming out of her mother's arm to sit on the stools by the kitchen island. 

Heiran ran her fingers through her hair, "Want me to make some tea?"

Lucy nodded so Heiran started putting things together as Mark moved pressed close to her so that he could whisper, "Is there anything else I need to know about him or anyone else in your life?"

"No. I swear, I'm not as well connected as you." She said sarcastically. "Yuggie barely talks to me about work and as close as we are he's never been overprotective or nosy unless it has to do with Lucy. I can deal with him."

"Says the woman who practically ran to the cops the first chance she got." Mark muttered. 

Heiran resisted the urge to throw the boiling water in Mark's face, "Says the woman who you work for." 

"Whatever, I'm going home." He said grumpily.

He tried to walk away but she caught his arm and pulled him back, "Please don't tell my father about him. Maybe he already knows but in case he doesn't, can you just keep it between us?" 

"Why?"

She gnawed on her bottom lip and he resisted the urge to tug it out, "I just don't want him hurting him. I can't have him take another person away from me."

"Fine." Mark said after seeing the worry in her eyes, walking by Lucy without sparing her a glance. 

The young girl sat up, following him with her eyes, "Goodnight Mark!"

Mark winced at Lucy's scream and glanced at her over his shoulder, "Bye, kid."

\-----

The week went by surprisingly uneventfully. Youngjae would keep poking around and asking annoying questions but other than that, there were no attempts on Heiran or Lucy's lives and Jinyoung couldn't find anything suspicious about Youngjae to lead him to be concerned about his involvement. The tension between him and Heiran had waned since the argument the night he met Yugyeom. She had kept true to her word and Yugyeom, despite his many visits to her house and office, never seemed to notice anything off. 

Now the real threat? Was Friday night at some mansion trailing behind Heiran as she networked. 

“I’m here, let’s go!” He called out as he leaned against the door when he walked into her house. He needed time to mentally prepare to be around so many people. He was used to existing out of everyone's periphery which was going to be hard do in a packed room next to one of the most important people at the company aside from the CEO. 

“I’m coming, I’m coming, relax will you?” She muttered as she walked down the stairs. 

Mark’s eyes flickered up and locked in on her as his mind slowed down. She was wearing a fitted dark green velvet dress with a dip in the neckline showing a modest amount of cleavage with a delicate chain draped across her neck. He pulled his eyes further up, drinking in the clean slick ponytail, simple glittery eyeshadow and all the things that go into making your skin look dewy and glowy.

Fuck she wasn’t human. 

His teeth caught on the inside of his lip as he watched her careful descent. There was something about her aura, even if you took away the expensive clothes, massive house, and heavy bank account, that make her look exquisite. Like something that you weren't allowed to stare at for too long or dare touch. 

She reminded him of a muse in some expensive painting. 

He was doing okay working in such close capacity with someone so attractive but he wasn’t prepared to deal with her looking like this.

Like someone he’d want. 

She frowned when she reached the base of the stairs, holding onto the railing as she slid her heels on, “What are you staring at?”

“You. Isn’t it obvious, duchess?” He murmured. 

She quirked a brow before moving to stand closer, “See? I told you. People will only see me.” 

“You look good.” He stated it like it was a fact but there was a rasp to his voice that had her faltering. Only she could fight with him like her life depended on it and then turn around and make his mouth water. 

She smiled lightly and nodded, “Thanks.”

“Who’s the little goblin staying with tonight?”

Her smile dropped and Mark’s grew as she checked herself in the mirror, “With Yugyeom. They’re, as Lucy likes to call it, ‘uncle-niece bonding’ right now. This usually means take-out, movies, and more sugar than I would normally approve.”

He really wanted to reach out and touch, but the impulse made him uncomfortable and he was quick to squash it down. “Ready to go?”

She turned and eyed him warily, “You’re not…wearing that, are you?” 

He looked down at his leather jacket and jeans, “Considering it’s what I always wear, safe to say yeah I am.”

“This is a black-tie event, you know that right? If your tattoos weren’t going to attract attention then your outfit certainly will. I wasn’t serious when I said no one would notice you. You need to at least try to blend in.”

He glared at her, “Don’t you dare.”

She walked to the hallway closet and opened it before pulling out a garment bag, “I had to guess your size, but it should do.” 

“I am still not above ripping out the engine to my car to avoid attending this circus.” He muttered as he grabbed the bag out of her hands. 

She rolled her eyes and pointed to her bathroom, “Hurry, we’re going to be late.”

\-----

“How many people here do you personally hate?” Mark whispered in Heiran’s ear as they circled the decadently dressed ballroom. 

He hated it the minute they walked in. First, his tie was cutting off his oxygen and his shoes were making his toes pinch, second everyone here looked stuck up, old and bored, and third, there were so many goddamn people. His eyes were constantly sweeping the floor in search of any of DS’s men who might come in hiding. He was sure that Youngjae was sent that invite by someone from DS.

“Approximately everyone. The only people I like are my assistant who isn’t here, and Yuna, back before I learned she was a gang member and was scamming me.” She breathed out. 

Mark didn’t smile at her comment and instead felt a churning in his stomach that felt a lot like understanding and little bit like sympathy. Despite his loyalty to Got7, there were very few people aside from Jinyoung who he had a relationship with outside their duties. He understood tolerating a lot but only caring about a few, “That must be lonely.”

“It always is at the top.” She mused, slowly sliding her arm in his. 

His eyes flashed downwards when she was distracted by a flute of champagne that was offered to her. He knew that she was doing this for the optics but it made him uncomfortable and just reminded him of what he saw Youngjae's wife do.

She took a swig before glancing at him, “But I have people around me that make it less lonely, Lucy being the main one.” 

He fell silent as they lapped the room for the second time until some important people called for her attention. He stepped back and stood from a safe distance, watching her mingle and charm everyone she spoke to.

No matter how much she hated these people, she knew how to handle them, this was her element, that much was clear to him. He guessed that speaking to other business people about her work while sitting on a massive grenade like the one Got7 threw at her, made this entire night all the more exhausting but she was handling it well. 

It was fascinating to watch her and sometimes he’d find himself focusing on the way her lips moved when she spoke or how her eyes would dart across someone’s face while she listened to them. 

He was pulled from his trance when his phone buzzed. He skimmed the incoming text from Jinyoung who was updating him on Youngjae’s whereabouts, affirming that he was still at his office and as far from this event as possible. 

Mark put his phone away and wondered if it was possible that the most painful part of this night was going to be this goddamn fucking tie.

\-----

Maybe it was the champagne, maybe it was the headache creeping on her and maybe it was soreness in her jaw from all the smiling. This, by far, was the most boring event she had ever been to.

But Heiran had never been more irritated in her life than when she noticed how perfectly in-synced Mark was with her. 

If she took two steps forward, he’d take one. If she moved to the bar, he’d be standing not too far away. Even when she thought he wasn’t looking and tried to move away, the next time she looked over her shoulder, he would be there. Watching. 

She knew it was his job and he was looking out for her safety but it was so infuriating, to be monitored like she was some child.

And that’s when she got the idea. 

She wanted to play a game. 

She couldn’t remember the last time she ever did that aside from playing with Lucy. She had to time it properly and make sure to catch him off guard. She waited until a new wave of waiters poured out from the kitchen with appetizers. They marched in a straight line and right before the first one passed her, she sped ducked by them and stood on the other side of their route. She looked over her shoulder to catch Mark frowning in confusion when the line of waiters separated them like they were on either side of a train track. 

They were separated by a human wall of waiters.

It was when they locked eyes that he saw the smug look and realized that she was going to do something to piss him off. 

And then she took off. 

She kept her pace as natural as possible as to not attract attention but once she was out to the foyer, she kicked off her Chanel heels and raced across the massive hallway, leaped over the rope to the off-limit parts of the venue and ran. 

She didn’t know the layout, she didn’t know where she was going but she ran, a slow smile breaking across her face at the feeling of her dress fluttering behind her as she wove in and out of rooms. 

When was the last time she did something so childish, so inappropriate and so unlike herself?

After a while, she started to wonder if Mark had just left her to run around on her own, not bothered to come find her. Her heart sunk a little with disappointment, like the idea of him chasing after her was something she _wanted_. 

But of course, when she stepped into a new room and found Mark leaning against the wall watching her, it was like a little lifesaver was thrown overboard to help her sinking heart.

She stared up at him, out of breath and grazed his cold, impersonal glare before spotting her heels dangling off his fingers. She gulped when he silently walked towards her and set them down in front of her feet 

She felt herself shrivel in size. Suddenly the childish glee felt immature and humiliating. He straightened up and stared right at her, “I bet I could track you down in less than 5 minutes if you had a 3-minute head start.”

For a second she thought she heard him wrong or misunderstood what he was saying but his eyes sparkled with mischief and she felt adrenaline hit her. 

His lips curled into a devilish smirk as he looked at his watch, “Better start running, duchess.”

\-----

It was the most fun she had at one of these fancy events in a really long time. 

She’d find new and creative ways to outsmart Mark in this elaborate game of cat and mouse, trying to make it harder and harder for him to find her. She almost got him one time, when she escaped back down to the ballroom but just as time was up, he was tapping her shoulder with a smirk. 

So they killed time acting nonchalant in front of other guests before sneaking off out of view and running to hide. 

She was currently hiding in the staff break room and glanced at her phone when Mark sent her a text with only one minute left. 

**From Mark: Give me a hint**

Heiran grinned before texting back. 

**To Mark: Beg for it.**

When the notification indicated he had read the text and she didn’t receive a reply, she knew she was riling him up. Busy staring at the text message, she didn’t notice the break room door slowly creep open as Mark ducked in, hiding behind a set of lockers before making his presence known. 

Heiran heard someone clear their throat and just as she looked up, Mark was in her face, pressed her against the wall leaning close right when the timer on her phone went off. 

Her lips parted with a sharp gasp as she peered up at him, a little breathless at his sudden appearance, “I don’t beg, duchess.” 

He was so fucking close to her. 

Did he always smell this good? She had never noticed before, but it was hard to notice things about someone when you hated them. 

For instance, it was hard to notice that Mark’s eyes could darken and lighten depending on is mood despite the fact that human eyes don’t work that way. 

Or how his lips were perfectly shaped and pink in the way she could only achieve out of a tube. 

Or that his hair falling into his eyes made her fingers itch to brush it away because it looked so soft.

Mark was, objectively, an inhumanely attractive man, not that she’d ever be caught dead admitting that out loud. 

Jesus, she needed to start dating or getting laid because she would _not_ allow herself to be attracted to someone who works for her father. 

“I win.” He mumbled, despite making no effort to move away. 

Her eyelids felt heavy and she wondered what it was about being crowded by his warmth that made her want to act against all rationale and bring him impossibly close. 

“I told you you look good tonight, right?” He whispered. 

She smiled lopsidedly, “Mark look at me, I _always_ look good, you telling me this once isn’t going to win me over.” 

“You want me to tell you how pretty you look every day?” He asked with a raised brow. 

Her grin grew, “I earned it, I think.” 

His scoff had no malice in it while he made the mistake of glancing at her mouth. Some of the lipstick had worn off but there was enough colour left to ignite the urge to smudge it all over her mouth and down her chin.

With his mouth. 

Or fingers.

Whatever she wanted. 

There was the sane part of his brain that was replaying Yeonhee’s harsh words and the truth that sat heavy in them. But he knew he’d never make a move or act on an impulse, he just wanted to see how much could happen before a line was crossed. 

He wondered, curiously, if she’d let him kiss her. Or if she hated him so much that despite the sometimes playful banter, she’d rather let DS take a shot at her than have his mouth anywhere near her. Which made this entire thing that much more strange; he rarely wasted his time thinking about someone that didn't like him, yet despite the numerous fights and arguing, he'd always be right back here.

Heiran’s felt her breathing catch in her throat when she saw him glance at her lips. There was no way in hell that he was thinking of kissing her, right? She annoyed him, she made his life difficult, she fought with him on anything and everything, she was his boss’s daughter who very clearly stated how little she cared for him and his entire lifestyle. 

He couldn’t possibly want to kiss her. 

Just as she felt his nose graze hers, a loud ringing sent them pushing away from each other as Mark pulled his phone out to see Jinyoung’s name. 

He had never been so grateful for an interruption before. 

“What?”

“Don’t you read your fucking texts?!” Jinyoung yelled. 

Mark winced, holding his phone away only to see a dozen unread texts that he must not have noticed while chasing after Heiran, “No, I was busy, what is it?” 

“Youngjae is there.”

Mark’s eyes shot to Heiran who, judging by the colour draining from her face, heard everything. 

“How do you know?” Any playfulness in his voice vanished in a second. 

“Tracked his phone’s GPS. It’s been pinging off a tower near the venue for the last 15 minutes so that’s how long I think he’s been there.” Jinyoung informed. 

Mark ran his fingers through his hair, “Okay shit, thanks for warning us. I’ll han—“

“That’s not all.” Mark could hear the tension in Jinyoung’s voice, one that doesn’t appear very often. “I found out who sent him the invite. It wasn’t someone from the company, it was a fake email address.”

Mark had expected as much, “Was it DS?”

“No.” Jinyoung mumbled, “It was the Boss. Heiran’s dad sent it.”

Heiran’s entire body locked up and her eyes were set ablaze. She grabbed Mark’s arm and pulled the phone towards her, “Why the fuck would he do that?”

“I’m guessing it has something to do with Jackson being sent to the same venue about 10 minutes ago.” 

“Jackson?” Mark’s voice pitched higher and Heiran could feel her heart racing as a wave of anxiety kicked in. The same anxiety she spent nearly her entire life dealing with after her father left. “He sent Jackson?”

“Yeah, he called him to his office and was given some sort of directive, then he rushed out of here. That could only mean one thing.” 

Mark was an idiot for telling the Boss that actions speak louder than words. He should've known he'd take it literally. 

“Fuck. Fuck. Okay, keep me posted.” Mark hung up the phone, his face turning blank to hide any emotion, "Come on."

He grabbed Heiran’s hand, picking up her heels off the floor of the hallway where he had abandoned them and moved them back towards the ballroom. Heiran squeezed his hand and he looked over, discomforted by the fear in her eyes. It was a rare sight to see, “What’s happening?”

“We need to leave. You’re fine, nothing’s going to happen to you but we both can’t be here.” He said calmly.

She frowned, “Why is it a bad that Jackson’s coming? Isn’t he one of your guys?”

“Yeah, he’s here on a directive which means it’s about to get messy.” Mark said vaguely. 

“Messy how?” When he didn’t reply, she pulled on his hand, her voice firm, “Messy how, Mark?” 

Mark closed his eyes for a moment and sighed, “Jackson is our arms dealer, he handles cleaning and prepping our weapons, making them untraceable, customizing them, and supplying them to gangs we’re affiliated with.” 

“Okay…” She said wearily. 

Mark took a deep breath, “Before Jackson was in charge of that, he used to be a hired gun. Sometimes, when I’m on another assignment, Jackson is sent into the field. He’s not as good or clean as I am but that motherfucker has aim.” 

“No.” She whispered, her nails digging into his hand. She planted her feet and refused to be pulled, “No, no, no, please tell me he isn’t here to kill Youngjae.”

“Your father probably isn't happy that he’s still around. I told him I’d take care of it but he must’ve found out that Jinyoung was looking through his phone and couldn’t find anything. Our Boss is impatient and especially when it comes to you.” Mark explained. He knew it was too easy when his Boss agreed to let him take charge and handle this himself. 

This was his backup plan. 

His Boss always wanted things done to his liking. If he felt most comfortable with Youngjae totally out of the picture, then that was what was going to happen, no matter how rational other plans would be

But this was the first time that he intentionally left Mark out of a plan for an assignment he was on. He always followed directives without question, so it didn’t make sense that he was suddenly having to find out information second hand. 

“B-But he’s innocent. We have no proof he’s working with DS or is trying to get back at Got7. As far as we know he’s just a normal guy doing his job. He can’t be killed for that. He doesn’t deserve to die. He's never done anything wrong.” She pleaded, her eyes misty. 

Mark ground his teeth, it was so easy for her to assume that people only got what they deserved, but that wasn’t the case. People got whatever shitty cards were dealt to them and they’d just have to figure life out on their own. 

“It’s not my place to make that decision. Jackson was given a directive by our Boss and I have to respect that. I can’t interfere or do whatever the hell I want. That’s not how this works.” He snapped before tugging her along. 

She ripped her hand out of his as they stood by the ballroom’s many entryways, “So you’re just going to let this poor man die because he was trying to make sure big companies stayed honest? _We’re_ the ones that broke the law and _you're_ the ones who weren't good enough at covering it up. _We_ deserve to be punished, why does he have to suffer for trying to do the right thing?”

“Doing the right thing? Guess what, duchess? Doing the right thing means sending you to jail for a crime you didn't commit. Your daughter will be sent through the foster care system, you’ll spend years behind bars, your career and reputation will be crushed to death and _if_ you ever get out of prison, you’ll never get your daughter back. Do _you_ think you deserve that? After all, you didn't knowingly do anything wrong either.” He seethed, not caring that each of his words caused her to flinch like he was pressing match to her skin. 

Her eyes watered as she stared up at him defiantly, “My life is not worth more than his.”

“A lot of good your morality will do you when you’re doing 25 to life without parole.” He growled before pressing his palm to her back and practically shoving her through the crowd. 

He kept his eyes on the exit but she searched the ballroom until she spotted Youngjae chatting casually with someone.

“What about his family?”

Mark froze mid-step. 

“I’m sure he has parents, siblings, maybe a girlfriend who have to live the rest of their lives mourning and grieving over such a senseless death.” She said; her voice cracking.

He willed his mind to stop but before he could he was sent back to that street where Youngjae fussed over his pregnant wife, future child and his perfect fucking family. One that might not have a father after tonight. 

“Doesn’t matter now. It’s too late.” 

Heiran let out a stunned breath, "How do you live with yourself?"

Mark chose not to hear her and instead focused on the crowd and getting the both of them out of here before everything was thrown into a state of chaos. His eyes surveyed the crowd until he spotted Jackson standing amongst people dressed in silks and gold, eyes trained on Youngjae. 

“Fucking shit.” 

Heiran jumped at the dread in Mark’s voice and followed his gaze until it landed on an unfamiliar face dressed in all black. Her eyes widened as she glanced between the man and Youngjae. It was all in slow motion when she saw him reach for a gun. 

Her body moved faster than her mind could before she was darting out towards Youngjae, just as the lights shut off. 

Then, gunfire.


	10. Tenth

The second the shot was fired, the ballroom was thrown in chaos. 

People were screaming and running towards exits blindly in the dark. Mark pushed past bodies that were bumping into him as the crowd ran in the opposite direction. He tried to maintain his sense of direction, hoping he was getting closer to Heiran. He couldn't see five fucking feet in front of him. 

He couldn’t believe that she would actually run _towards_ a speeding bullet. 

Suddenly the lights flickered back on and some of the people stopped running to look around at the carnage while others continued to head to the door. Mark glanced over to see Jackson’s face set in a glower before turning and blending with the crowd. 

“Fuck.” Mark grumbled as he looked back to where Youngjae was standing. 

No one was there. 

Mark looked around frantically in search of Heiran and Youngjae. He pulled out his phone and called Heiran. Suddenly the sound of her ringtone pulled his focus over to a room tucked off to the side of the ballroom. 

He ran over and caught a glimpse of Heiran leaning against the banister, blood trickling down her arm as she spoke to Youngjae in front of her. 

Mark closed his eyes and let out a sigh of relief. 

If she kept this up, he was going to be sent to an early grave.

\-----

“What the fuck was that? Did someone just fucking shoot at me?!” 

Heiran’s head was spinning as she tried to keep up with Youngjae’s hysteria. She didn’t know why she was so dizzy. When the lights were off she remembered slamming into Youngjae’s body, sending them both tumbling to the ground just as the bullet fired off. She could still feel her ear ringing from the sound of it. 

And as much as she couldn’t blame him for freaking out, she really couldn’t keep up. 

“Yeah, I think so. I don’t know for sure, it was dark.” She mumbled, leaning her head back. 

Youngjae paced, anxiously running her fingers through his hair, “I could’ve died. I could’ve fucking died right now. Holy shit. I can't believe this actually happened. I wasn't even going to come tonight.”

"Why did you?" She asked seriously. 

He shook his head, "I was told it was really important that I attend. What are the chances, man? I'm shaking, my heart is racing." 

“Well, you’re alive.” She said blankly, letting her eyes fall shut. 

He looked over at her, his face softening, “Thanks to you.” 

She opened her eyes and peered at him, “You might be making my life a living hell but I couldn’t let you get shot, now could I?”

“I—“

Youngjae fell silent when Mark stormed in, charging straight for her, “Are you out of your damn mind?”

“No Mark, just incredibly tired.” Heiran said blankly. 

He huffed, pulling his tie loose until he could slip it off his neck and tug her close. He completely ignored Youngjae's presence. He wrapped it around the wound after inspecting it, knotting it tight to stop the blood from flowing. Luckily it wasn’t an actual bullet wound and just a nick that broke enough skin to draw blood. 

Heiran held her breath and watched him wipe at the blood on her arm, his fingers drawing gentle patterns on her skin, “I’m still mad at you.”

“I know.” He said calmly. “Let me make sure you’re okay first.” 

She huffed but acquiesced, letting him check her arm one more time before Youngjae interrupted, “This is all very cute but what the fuck just happened?”

\-----

It took a lot of cajoling on Heiran’s part before she convinced Youngjae that they’d drive him home and get someone to pick his car up for him. Mark didn’t utter a word and she wasn’t sure if it was because he was furious at her or because he just didn’t want him in his car. 

Either way, the drive to his house was silent, Mark and Heiran were icing each other out and Youngjae was too freaked out to notice the frigid atmosphere. They had spun some lie that it was probably a robbery attempt that went wrong and that Youngjae wasn’t a target but just unlucky. 

He didn’t seem to believe them but didn’t resist when they suggested leaving before the cops came.

“Really puts everything into perspective, huh?”

Heiran glanced at Youngjae through the rearview mirror, “Huh?”

“Almost being shot, makes you realize how quickly you could just…die. It won’t be like in a movie where there might be a twist ending because the main character never dies. You’re just gone and have no way to soothe or care for the people you didn’t want to leave behind. You're just _torn_ away from your life.” He said solemnly. 

Heiran still wasn’t used to hearing Youngjae speak to her like that, without the taunting or malice he’d show her at their office. But there was something in his words that hit too close to home to the point where the backs of her eyes were starting to itch. 

“Try not to think about it too much, you’ll drive yourself mad. Just appreciate what you have." She said. 

Youngjae was quiet for a moment before leaning forward, “Thank you for saving me, Heiran. With our relationship, you probably could’ve benefited a lot from looking the other way. I-I don’t know how to repay you.”

She felt Mark’s gaze on her, “Don’t thank me and you don’t have to repay me, Youngjae. Seriously.”

He sighed and leaned his head back, “You’re a way better person than I thought you were going to be, Heiran. I feel bad saying this, I think I judged you too hard.”

“Why me, though?” She asked, “what was it about me that made you think I was hiding something?”

He closed his eyes, “There were rumours in the financial industry that some of the money circulating in your company was illegal and that it was your doing since these rumours only started after you were promoted to VP. But no matter where I looked, I couldn’t find anything proving that. I thought I’d do it with SmartLogic but even that was a bust.”

Heiran said nothing as Mark continued to spare glances at her until they finally pulled up to Youngjae’s house. 

“We’re here.” Mark called out.

Youngjae took off his belt and leaned forward, touching both their shoulders, “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to thank you. I’m so happy to be home.”

Neither of them said much as Youngjae got out of the car. Heiran watched him stand by the door but before he could unlock it, it swung open revealing the woman inside, tears spilling down her face as she hugged him.

Her mouth dropped as Mark drove them back to her house. 

\-----

The drive was silent except for when she got out. 

“Spend the night.”

His eyes were wide as he looked at her unsurely, “It’s late and your clothes are here anyways. Just take my guest room.”

“Bu—“

“I’m not asking you, Mark.” She said coldly, before slamming the car door and going inside the house.

He came in a few seconds later, watching her wearily as she kicked off her shoes and soullessly marched up the stairs. She had texted Yugyeom, telling him to let Lucy spend the night at his apartment so the house was eerily quiet for this late. 

Mark followed her path until he stood by her bedroom door as she pulled her earrings out and set them down by her vanity. She moved to her closet, swinging it open before staring blankly at everything hung up in front of her. Mark followed her in cautiously and frowned, he hated the silence, he wanted her to do something already. 

She didn’t just offer him her spare bedroom out of the kindness of her heart, she wanted to say something to him. She wanted them to be alone so she could give him a piece of her mind and he just wanted her to get on with it because the anticipation was killing him. He watched her reach her arm behind her back and attempt to grab hold of the zipper on her dress. She struggled for a few more seconds before he stepped in behind her and pushed her hands away before sliding the zipper down her back. 

“You knew, didn’t you?”

His hand froze midway down, “Knew what?”

“That he had a pregnant wife.”

He pulled her zipper the rest of the way down before stepping away. When she started to slide her straps off her shoulders, he turned his back to her and leaned against the door, looking into her bedroom, “Saw them together this week.”

She stepped out of the dress, not bothering to hang it up and pulled on comfortable clothes before walking up behind him, “And you were just going to let your guy kill him?”

He turned when he heard her voice near his ear and looked down at her, “This is bigger than anything you and I could do. I don’t have a say in things like that.”

“You’re okay with that? You’re okay with having such little control?” She asked incredulously.

Mark didn’t falter, “It’s my job.”

“Or your excuse.” She sneered and shoved past him to walk into her bathroom. He trailed after her, perching on the edge of her bathtub while she set products on the counter.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

She shrugged dismissively, “It must be easy on your conscious to kill for a living when you can turn around and say that you did it because you were told to and not because you wanted to.”

“It’s more complicated than that. There isn’t a whole lot of autonomy in my line of work, I don't get to decide what I want and don't want to do. That's not my purpose and that's just the way it is. I am a criminal, I don’t know why you expect me to have more of a moral compass.” He barked, annoyed. He wasn’t even sure why they were having this conversation at all. It didn’t matter if she agreed with him or not, it wasn’t like he was someone whose principles or morals should matter to her. 

She massaged foam onto her skin, slowly stripping her makeup off, “I guess I never had to come face to face with it. Honestly, how do you sleep at night?”

“Not all of us come from a life where being the good guy was easy.” He hissed vengefully. He didn't even know why he was bothering with this argument. He had nothing to prove to her and he didn't care enough about to her to have her see things his way. But she had hit a sore spot that no one he worked with or knew would ever dare to touch because they were all the same.

She dried her face before glaring at him through the mirror, “Why? Because you lost both your parents when you were young? Because you didn’t have money or means to survive? Because you were scared and no one was there to look out for you except yourself?” 

“Yeah, something like that.” He snapped.

“Guess what? My life was like that too. I had a father that fucked off with all our money to start a crime ring, a mother that was terminally ill all when I wasn’t old enough to get a job. Your past is no fucking excuse for the shitty decisions you make and how they affect other people.” Her voice rose in anger.

His brow twitched, “I was young,” he growled out as he stood, “I didn’t have anyone to tell me that there were other options, I was 12 years old when I joined a gang because I didn’t fucking know any better. Because I wanted a family and someone to help me survive. Once you’re in a life like that, your soul is sold and you’re not getting out, so I was stuck in a life that maybe wasn't ideal but I don't have anything else. So, fuck you for blaming me for a decision I made as a fucking _kid_.” 

She turned to stare at him, the angry gone from her eyes but the pain was still there, “Fine, I won’t blame you for that, but do you realize that you almost put that unborn child into the same position?”

He grabbed her arm abruptly and kicked the lid of the toilet down before forcing her down, “Sit.” 

She opened her mouth to fight back but he just turned away rummaging around her cabinet before finding what he was looking for. He sat down in front of her and carefully untied his tie from her arm before dabbing it with some rubbing alcohol.

“I know, I am fully aware of the consequences and victims of the work I do, but I also know when to pick my battles. I weigh the pros and cons of putting myself on the line by disobeying a man that could kill me if he wanted. Call me selfish but I need to survive too.” Mark said lowly. "And you learn quickly that unless you're the one in charge, your opinion or values are worthless."

Heiran stared at him, noting the purplish bags under his eyes, “Is that why you’re so loyal? Not because you actually care for this life or admire my father but because you want to survive?”

“Can’t it be both?” He said plainly, before pressing a clean bandaid onto her wound. 

He stood to put everything away and she just stared at her feet, “Would you ever want to leave?”

“You can’t just go around asking people like me that question, duchess.” He said before leaning against the sink to watch her. 

She massaged her temples, “Will you get in trouble for what I did tonight?”

“Probably.”

Heiran paused, “Will my dad try to kill him again?”

“I don’t think after the stunt you pulled today that he’d risk it.” Mark replied, he was sure that no matter how much trouble he was going to be in, the amount that Jackson would be in would be worse. 

She scoffed, “He doesn’t care that much about me.”

“He cared enough to try to get rid of a potential threat against you before you got hurt.” He pointed out.

“And look how that turned out.” She said, pointing to her bandage. 

Mark blinked tiredly, “Does it hurt?”

“Stings a bit.” 

“It’s late, so try to get some sleep, we’ll have to deal with Youngjae again tomorrow and I have to face your father’s wrath. We both need all the rest we can get.” If they weren't fresh off a fight, he'd have complimented her for her bravery but he was thinking that maybe she didn't need the encouragement. 

She nodded and followed him out of her bedroom and lingered by the hallway, “Your clothes are still in the bathroom downstairs, you can use whatever you need just make sure yo—“

“I’m gone by morning, yeah I know the drill, duchess.” He said.

He was halfway down the stairs when she called his name, making him look over at her.

“If my father ever gave you a directive to kill me, would you do it?”

\-----

Come morning, Heiran’s head was pounding, despite not having a hangover and some of her anger towards Mark had evaporated.

Some.

She didn't know why she tried to pick a fight or question his morals. If his principles were skewed, it wasn't her responsibility to set him straight. She knew who he was and what he did since the first time she met him, she shouldn't be surprised that he lacked empathy or only cared about getting his job done. He was a killer, did she think he'd be a compassionate one?

Regardless, after spending so much time together, she was getting used to having him on her side as an ally, and typically she expected that she saw eye to eye with her allies. But after what happened at the gala, she was disappointed. 

In herself for forgetting who he was.

And in him for not doing the right thing.

Nonetheless, her anger towards him waned because his life and his decisions don't concern her. 

Her anger towards her father, on the other hand? 

It increased by ten. 

“What am I looking at?” Mark asked when he walked into her office. 

Heiran was sitting on her couch, staring at a huge abstract painting in an ornate gold frame that was leaning against her desk. “It’s hideous, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, why did you buy it?” Mark asked, inspecting the bold streaks of red and blue.

She groaned and held up a card, “I didn’t. It was a gift courtesy of father dearest.”

Mark took it from her and read the note. 

**_Sorry for last night. Hope this makes up for it, pumpkin._ **

Mark cringed and handed the note back to her. “What are you going to do with it?” 

“Take it back, throw it in his face and tell him he can’t buy my forgiveness. What did he say to you when you spoke to him?” She asked.

“He was pissed that I didn’t stop you from running, he wanted to know why you defended him.” He said nonchalantly. 

Glancing sideways, she could see the cut on his eyebrow and the band-aid doing a poor job of covering the bruise on his face. Guess the conversation with her dad wasn't that simple. She frowned, “Will he keep going after him?”

“No, he said he won’t.” Mark had a feeling that he meant it too.

She chewed on her lip, “Did he tell you why you weren’t aware of Jackson being there?”

“I didn’t ask. It’s not my place. You know that.” He said firmly.

She grunted, “Fine, but I need to talk to him myself. What he did cross the line and he needs to hear it from me.”

“Want me to take you after work?” He wasn't going to fight her on it, if it had to do with their father-daughter relationship, he was keeping his mouth shut.

She nodded, “I really hate that I have to do this. I was hoping to never see him again.” 

“At least now we just have to deal with Youngjae and make sure he doesn't realize that you were running towards him before the gun was fired.” He mused.

Heiran narrowed her eyes at him, "Or before he realizes that you drove him home without him giving you his address, yeah, I noticed."

“Ma’am?”

Eun walked into her office, a confused look on her face as she stared at a piece of paper in her hands. Heiran shot Mark a dirty look which he returned with a smile, "What is it, Eun?”

“I just got an email from the auditor’s office. Apparently Youngjae removed himself from the investigation so the office is going to look into his recusal so the investigation has been suspended until further notice.” She said while handing Heiran the printout. 

“What the hell.” Heiran breathed out while taking the email from her. Mark leaned over her shoulder, reading the email that outlined exactly what Eun said. “I can’t believe this.”

Eun scratched her head, “It’s weird, right? I asked some other people I know who had their offices audited and none of them ever had an auditor recuse themselves halfway through an investigation.”

Heiran cut a glance at Mark before folding the paper, “Thank you, Eun, please notify everyone of this update and schedule me in for a meeting with the CEO to discuss next steps.”

Eun nodded and closed the door behind her. Heiran opened the paper and read it again, “This has to be about last night, he must’ve been spooked at what happened.”

“Makes sense. He probably thinks that whoever missed was going to try again and it doesn’t take a genius to figure it had something to do with his investigation here.” Mark replied, “Looks like everything worked out.”

She turned and stared at the painting sitting in her office, “Yeah, I guess it did.”

\-----

“I know I said you were impressive but this is incredible.” 

Heiran smiled dutifully as the CEO read the email, “How did you do this?”

“Honestly sir, I had very little say in it. We…spoke briefly at the event last night and I thought I’d be seeing him today, nothing indicated that he’d pull himself off.”

He shook his head, “This is great, normally I wouldn’t bat an eye for an audit but the merger seems to have everyone on edge, I heard about that speech your rep at SmartLogic gave to Samsung. That was one hell of a risk.”

Heiran thought back to Yeonhee’s rant and felt her lips twitch, “Trust me, I know. I was just as taken aback.”

“And everything else is going well for you? Nothing I can help with?”

She dug her nails into her palm, “Everything’s going smoothly sir, I’m finalizing things with SmartLogic, Samsung is probably going to want to meet with them after what transpired but I’m confident that will be the last hurdle before the merger is final and ready to go.” 

“And little Lucy?”

Heiran grinned, “Doing as well as ever, sir.”

“Some people say that it’s impossible to have it all but you’ve managed to do it. You have a successful career, you manage to be a single mother and you’re still so young with so much time to accomplish endless things.” He said with a warm smile. 

Ha. 

She used to think she had it all, now? Not so much.

“I’m very happy with where I am, sir, I can’t wait for what’s to come.” She said stiffly. 

“I’m proud of you, Heiran. I don’t say this to a lot of my executives because it goes straight to their heads, but you have always been one of the most solid people this company has had the luxury of having.” 

For once, the guilt wasn’t weighing down on her, she just smiled, grateful that above all else, she was treated well here. “Thank you, sir, I will always do whatever I can for this company.” 

“I trust you with that, Heiran. This isn’t the highest you’re going to be here, there is more of a future here for you, and your work, your integrity, and your character is going to earn you a very important position with us one day.” He said carefully.

She felt her breath catch, there had been rumours of the CEO looking to retire over the next few years and that a pool of successors was being developed. Was he implying that her name was in the mix? That would be a dream. 

“Sir…”

He smiled knowingly, “I can’t reveal too much but I think I know what you’re thinking and you would be correct. Keep at it and in a few years you will be somewhere you never thought you could. I have big plans for you, Heiran.” 

“Thank you, sir. I will make sure I earn it.”

“Oh, Heiran, you most certainly already have.” 

\-----

After her meeting with the CEO, she was only angrier. 

Her fingers could almost _graze_ her dreams and career goals but they were balanced on a cliff and her father was about to shove it over the edge.

When she inevitably has to blow up the SmartLogic merger, it was going to be an even bigger hit to her career than she had anticipated. It would probably take her out of the running for CEO and maybe even out of her job. 

She stormed her father’s headquarters, hobbling through the corridors past people who were standing around, gaping at her as she carried her father’s present with her. 

Mark followed behind her, casting a weathering glance at everyone in Got7 who were climbing over each other just to get a glimpse of her. Word must’ve gotten out that the Boss’s daughter was stopping by. Jinyoung quirked a brow when she blew past his office, heading straight for the tall mahogany doors at the end of the hall. 

Even Yeonhee poked her head out of her office, a scowl on her face that he chose to ignore. 

“Help me.” Heiran grunted as she stopped by the door.

He reached out, holding it open for her before whispering quickly in her ear, “Are you sure about this?”

“Never been surer in my life.” She hissed.

He followed her in, her father’s back towards them, “Do you want me to stay?”

“Yes.” 

She walked into the room and threw the painting on the ground and that’s when he turned to acknowledge her, “Take it back. I don’t want anything your blood money bought.”

“To be fair pumpkin, you already have something my money bought and he’s standing behind you.” He said calmly with a cautionary smile.

She growled, “You can’t just buy me off. I’m not going to forgive you for nearly killing an innocent man.”

“I just wanted to protect you. I know I may have taken more drastic measures and I’m sorry you got hurt but I would do anything to make sure you are safe.” He said gently.

She laughed dryly, “That’s rich. Just take your crappy painting back.”

“Keep it.” He said quietly, lifting and sliding the frame back to her, “It’s legally procured and quick expensive. You could sell it if you want. I just wanted to try to give you something that showed I care. I do, pumpkin. I care so much. I know I’m no good at showing it and you have no reason to want me around but at least let me make up for it. Every day of my life I regretted what I did and I was too much of a coward to fix what I broke. I would stare at our family picture and pray that I’d be able to see you again.”

She felt her eyes water, “You waited too long. No one heard your fucking prayers because more than half your family is gone, all you have is me and I want nothing to do with you.”

His smile was sad, “I know. And I’m living with that, but I don’t want to lose everyone now.”

“What am I supposed to do with something so heinous, anyways?” She said bitterly, eyeing the painting.

“Burn it? Hide it in your closet? Hang it up? Whatever you want, I just want to _try_.”

She looked at her feet with a frown, “No. You don’t get to try. You could’ve tried when you decided to steal mom’s money. You could’ve come back and returned it. You could’ve paid for her treatments. You’ve had plenty of times to try. Waiting until you’ve ruined my life for a second time is too late to want to try.” 

“Pumpk—“

“I’ll keep the painting. Not for the sake of our relationship but because if I end up without a job or home or worse, in jail, then I’ll sell it. But don’t think this is symbolic. As long as you’re still running a gang and lying, stealing and killing, we have no relationship. You aren’t my father, I’m not your daughter, I’m just a woman whose life you chose to destroy.” She seethed. 

He looked away, “It won’t stop me from trying.”

“I wish it did.” She breathed out. “Every day I wish mom never met you. I wish she got a prenup, I wish people told her not to marry a man that clearly was only in it for her money. I wish _you_ died instead of her.” 

Her father’s eyes widened and his mouth fell open but words didn’t come out. 

“From now on…” she said quietly, “if you try to get involved with protecting me from DS, you notify Mark.”

Her father scoffed, his tone quickly sharpening, “Mark is _my_ employee. I don’t need to report to him.”

“No, but you need to report to me and since I can’t stand listening or seeing you so we’ll do it through him. I don’t _ever_ want what happened last night to happen again. No more surprises. Not when my safety and the safety of people around me are involved.” She ordered.

“Fine, bu—“

“That’s how I know you don’t really care about anyone but yourself. You wanted to do this big gesture but you didn’t think for a second, about the danger it could put me in which is how I ended up with a bullet grazing my skin.” She said. 

He dropped his gaze to the floor, ashamed, “I understand. I’m sorry, pumpkin.”

Her face twisted before she shook her head, probably telling herself that whatever she was about to say wasn’t worth the energy. She picked up the painting and stormed off.

Mark lingered by the door, seemed that everyone had forgotten that he was there and witness the entire massacre. He stared at his Boss who glowered at him when they met eyes, “What do you want?”

He wondered what it took to rob your own family and leave them behind to die. 

At what point are you too far gone that you’re beyond saving? 

And had he crossed that point already?

“Nothing, sir."

\-----

Mark stood over his latest assignment. A quick one that he managed to take care of after dropping Heiran home. 

She was clearly distraught but he knew that sticking around and trying to make her feel better wasn’t going to work. Especially coming from him, he knew his sympathy was the last thing in the world that could make her feel better. So he waited until she fell asleep next to Lucy before driving to an underpass where an informant who had double-crossed one of his members was to meet him.

Now, that informant was curled up, holding his stomach as blood poured out of him like a river. 

Somewhere in between shooting him and waiting for him to bleed out, Mark’s mind drifted to the conversation between Heiran and her father. People used to joke that if the Boss ever died or retired, that Mark would be handed the keys to the castle. 

He wondered if he would ever be in the same situation. If one day maybe he’d have a daughter and she would hate everything he did and everything he stood for. Maybe she’d want nothing to do with him and wish he were dead because that’s how much she despised him.

Mark thought that if that were to happen, it'd make him feel sick. 

Which was why he could probably never have a family.

The informant choked a little, blood spitting out of his mouth. Mark thought about how he’d feel if Youngjae really did die. Knowing his own morbidity, he’d probably drive by their house and see his wife, a broken mess. 

Mark used the tip of his shoe to lift the man’s face before letting it drop to the ground with a wet slap.

Maybe she was right and he did use his position in the pecking order to excuse the evilness of what he does in the sanctity of the night. It doesn’t matter how detached you are to the job, as long as you’re the one carrying it out, you’re still the one responsible. 

There was probably an alternate universe where he goes into foster care at 12 instead of joining a gang and maybe he’d end up a better, more honest person. 

He leaned down and pressed his fingers against the man’s pulse before standing and walking back to his car. He sent a text to his crew for a cleanup job before driving away. 

And maybe the truth is the thought of how close he could've been to grow up normal filled him with a type of sickening resentment that he couldn't compartmentalize.

There was no point in envisioning a life that he could never have. It was too late for him.

Heiran asked him how he slept at night and the truth is, not very well.


	11. Eleventh

Heiran stared at a picture of a The Girl With The Pearl Earring on her computer, spinning her chair in her home office from side to side while looking at it. 

She loved it and even though it was nothing like being able to stand in front of the real thing, she was mesmerized. There was something about the faraway look in the girl’s eyes that put her in a trance. She looked like she was staring into your soul, knowing all your hidden secrets and watching you pretend like they weren’t yours. 

The sound of the doorbell ringing pulled her out of the trance. She switched tabs, opening the one synced to the cameras out front and felt her lips hitch when she found Yugyeom standing outside the door. Mark had left earlier in the day to take care of something that she didn’t ask him about and had promised to come back. Lucy was in school which meant the house was silent and she was thrilled to have anyone over. 

Racing down the stairs, she swung the door open and beamed when he held up a bottle of wine, “I didn’t bring glasses.”

\-----

“Just get on with it.”

Mark winced at Yeonhee’s cold tone, the minute she showed up at his old apartment after he had sent a text asking her to come. Judging by the distance she kept and the fact that she didn’t initiate it into another instance where they’d end up in bed, he had a feeling she knew where this was going.

Yeonhee wasn’t dumb, though she pretended to be none the wiser, she always knew what was going on around her. 

He looked at his hands, curling his fingers as he mulled over what he was going to say. He hadn't really given himself time to plan out what to say, in fact, he tried his best to think too much about this entire thing at all until they were seated across from each other, “This isn’t working anymore.”

“Fuck you.” She snapped.

He closed his eyes, “It’s not yo—“

“Don’t you dare finish that sentence like I’m some random girl you met on Tinder.” She barked. 

He opened his eyes, his gaze hard, “This is messy, getting involved with someone in Got7 was a bad decision and it’s just gotten more and more complicated the longer we do this. We need to stop and just cut our losses before this ruins us anymore.”

She scoffed, looking away, “We’ve been fucking for 5 years and now it’s suddenly not working?”

“Be honest, it hasn’t been working for you either.” He grumbled, “What we’ve been doing, hooking up, it’s not sustainable. It was instant gratification and then spending the rest of the time feeling like shit.”

She glared at him, venom dripping, “It was working just _fine_ for me so how come you just get to make this call?”

“I know that’s not true. You wanted more than what we had and I couldn't give that to you. I assumed that because we agreed on no strings attached that nothing else mattered, not even when you made it clear that feelings were getting involved. I was a dick and I should've said something sooner. I don't want to keep ignoring that this is headed for disaster. Why stay stuck in this thing that's keeping us both miserable when you could find something better with someone who can actually give you what you want?” He asked.

She stared at him for a long silent moment before speaking, her voice low, “Why did you even start this with us if you hated it so much?”

He looked away, the heaviness in his chest uncomfortable, "I didn't think it'd get complicated or that I'd be hurting you. I knew that relationships weren't for me, I didn't think I had the capacity or soul for that. I never said anything because deep down I knew you'd be there, even if you weren't happy, I was so fucking selfish. Even if I broke your heart or made you sad, you'd still come over, you'd still let me in. All while knowing that I didn't feel the same."

“Fuck, I hate you so much right now.” She hissed. “You’re a fucking murderer, Mark. That’s all you do. You’re a glorified hitman. Get off your moral high horse and stop acting like you're this better person doing the right thing.” 

He took a deep breath, “You can hate me but this is what we both need because there's no clean ending at the rate we're going. It's better this way, for us to go back to being colleagues and getting the job done without letting anything else get in the way of it. And maybe this is also what it takes to stop us from holding each other back from finding what we actually need.” 

“That’s not happening. There’s no going back to before, we both knew that when we started this.” She muttered.

He shook his head, “Maybe not, but we have to try. I’ve always admired the work you do, you’re good at your job, you’re important to Got7 and to this team. I won’t do anything to jeopardize that.”

She laughed dryly, “How diplomatic of you.” 

Silence dropped over them and she just started at the chipping doorframe before she spoke, “In the 5 years we slept together, did you ever, even for a second, feel something more than just wanting to get off?”

“I don’t think so, Yeonhee.” He said honestly, “I didn’t think that I could feel like that about another person, or that someone like me was even allowed to, that's how I felt the entire time we were together. That's why we were doing it no strings attach. Because I didn't have strings. You said it yourself, I’m a murderer.” 

Her eyes softened a fraction before they froze over again, “And now you think that things changed and you’re able to feel those things that but just not with me.”

“That’s not what I said.” He huffed. 

She leaned her head back, “It’s because of Heiran, isn’t it?”

“No.” He hissed through his teeth, his body tensing. 

Yeonhee’s lips curled up, “Let me guess, you spent enough time with her that you got a glimpse of her perfect little normal life with her cute little daughter and you thought to yourself that maybe you could be a part of this life, _her_ life. You’re just playing yourself.”

“That’s not true. This had nothing to do with her.” He growled. 

She laughed, “She’s not making room in her life for you, Mark. I’m sorry to break it to you, she’s not looking for a husband and her daughter isn’t looking for a new dad. You’re temporary in her life, don’t embarrass yourself by making decisions because of her. Yeah, she’s in a shitty situation but that woman actually lived a pretty decent life. She’s not about to slum it with a criminal like you. You're part of her routine until you're not.”

“Stop, Yeonhee.” He whispered. 

“Why!” She yelled, tears forming, “Why do I have to make this easy for you! Yeah, I’m cold and I can be a bitch sometimes, but I actually really like you. I’ve had feelings for you for as long as I can remember. From the first fucking day you walked into this shithole. Why do I just have to be okay with you ending things between us? I’m not as emotionless as you think I am!” 

He felt his breath catch and his heart sink, “I'm sorry, that's all I can say, but for what it’s worth, I never, not for a second, thought you were ever a bitch or emotionless. You were just a girl who had it just as hard as I did. I think that’s why it felt like we understood each other but we can’t do this anymore. I can’t keep hurting you and act like I’m not.” 

“Bullshit.” She wiped the tears before standing, “I don’t care what you tell yourself but anyone in a 100-mile radius knows there’s something going between the two of you. I don’t know her well enough but I know you. I know when you start acting out of character.”

“Yeonhee plea—“

“I heard, you know.” She said while boring into his eyes, “I heard how the Boss reamed you out when he found out Jackson almost shot her because you didn’t stop her. I heard what you said to him. You’re not fooling anyone.” 

His jaw tensed and his eyes narrowed but he was deathly silent, his stare following her as she grabbed her things and made for the door. She had a grip on the doorknob before turning to him.

“I can’t stand you but for your sake, I hope you figure out why exactly she makes you act differently because the sooner you do, the sooner you can realize why it’d never work out.”

\-----

“I still don’t get it.” Heiran mused as she took a hearty sip of the tart wine. 

They were both stretched out on her couch, finally getting a chance to catch up with each other, “You were living in a beautiful city, you were making serious bank, I saw your instagram feed, you had friends and a social life. Why leave that all behind just to be back here?” 

He pursed his lips, “I don’t know, it was fine I guess, but nothing felt…stable. I had friends but it felt like college where 90% of the people you call friends you probably won’t see after you graduate. I’m too old to be doing that. I want to be around the people that will be in my life for the long run, I have friends here who are like that. Plus work was boring, no amount of money in the world makes that appealing.” 

She frowned, using her toes to poke at his waist, “I get that, I really do, but you had a girlfriend, you were living with her. That has to count for something. Are you guys going to do long distance?”

A bitter smile graced his face as he took a sip. “We just didn’t work out."

She snorted, “You chose to stay in another continent to be with her, it can’t just not work out.”

“It does when you come home to her fucking the colleague she spent the last month complaining to you about.”

She froze mid-sip, “Shit.”

“I know what you’re thinking but _please_ do not track her down and try to sue her for me or something.” He chuckled. 

She bit down on her tongue, that was exactly what she wanted to do. She had always been protective of him, “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

“Didn’t matter. I was sad when it happened but then I realized that I could be coming home and nothing was making me stay. So I took it as a blessing.” He said lightly. 

She frowned, thumbing the stem of her glass as she watched him. He was always an optimist but that meant that he wouldn’t let himself focus on the parts of himself that made him sad, no matter how much he needed it. 

“It’s not a blessing. It’s shitty and she’s a shitty person for cheating, but you’re meant for big things, Yugyeom. You always have been and you’ll always have a family here. We’re your roots, but don't let that be the reason you hold yourself back.”

Yugyeom groaned and knocked back the glass of wine, “It’s too early and I’m too sober to get this emotional. What about you? How’s life been for you?”

Heiran couldn’t honestly answer that question and she couldn’t blatantly lie to him. “Busy. I’ve just been busy, you know.”

“With work?”

She nodded and Yugyeom looked annoyed, “Why do you always do this to yourself? 

“Working?” She asked dubiously, "It's cause I have a job."

“You work like you’re still in high school trying to save up to pay for everything. Like you don’t have enough money as it is.“ He said. 

She pursed her lips, “It’s not about the money.”

“Yeah it is. You’re so used to growing up without enough that you’re obsessed with making sure your kid doesn’t live the same life. But you’re so goddamn rich that you could retire today and still pay Lucy’s tuition 4 times over.” He said.

“What’s your point?” She asked, knitting her brows. 

“Slow down. Go and take Lucy for a vacation. Go on dates.”

“Ah, there it is.” She deadpanned, “I’m not dating anyone. I’m not going to date anyone. I feel like you of all people shouldn’t be encouraging me to do it.”

Yugyeom shrugged, “I’m not scarred for life because she cheated on me. It was one shitty relationship, doesn’t mean my future ones will be as shitty. You should think that too.”

“Yugyeom I don’t want to be having this conversation right now.” She said tiredly.

Yugyeom sighed, “Not everyone will be like your ex, you know. Not everyone will just leave.”

She picked at the thread on her silk dress and frowned, “I love Lucy, she’s my entire world and everything and every person comes second to her. But one thing is, no one wants a kid that’s not theirs. I don’t need to bring that around her and I don't need to her to constantly get attached to male figures who disappear.”

Their conversation stuttered to a halt when she heard the front door open and Yugyeom leaned back to look in that direction but before she could see Mark, she heard him, “Hey duchess, whose car is out th…”

His voice trailed as he stepped into the living room and found the two of them. Lucy was standing next to him, her fingers curled into the hem of his shirt. She had always been clingy but when Mark refused to hold her hand, she took to clinging onto his shirt whenever they walked around together. 

He stiffened a fraction before glancing at Heiran. She could read the harshness in his eyes, his way of telling her off because he hated being around Yugyeom ever since he found out he was a cop. He was probably yelling at her in his head for not texting him a warning. 

“Yugyeom, right?” Mark asked. She knew that he knew his name. 

Yugyeom stood, wiping the hand that was damp from the chilled wine glass and held it out, “Yeah, hey, Mark.” 

Heiran stood, setting her glass down before holding her arms out to Lucy who hurried into her hug, “Hi mom.” 

She peppered the side of her head with kissed before pulling back, “Hi sunshine, why don’t you go get changed and I’ll make you something to eat, yeah?”

Lucy beamed and nodded before waving at Yugyeom, “Hi Yugyeom!”

Yugyeom waved back at her before turning to Heiran, “Mark picks Lucy up?” 

She nodded silently, eyes on Mark who refused to acknowledge her, “Why?”

He shook his head, “Just surprised, you never let men around her.”

Mark ran a hand through his hair, “Just when she’s busy, otherwise she does it herself.”

“And you have a key to her house.” Yugyeom’s voice wasn’t accusatory but more awestruck like he was just now piecing together the extent of their relationship. 

Mark looked at Heiran who just brushed past them and headed to the kitchen. Both men followed in tow as she opened the fridge, “He has it in case of emergencies. Do you want something to drink?”

“No, I have to drive back. Here.” He dropped a plastic bag on the kitchen counter before moving to sit in the corner by the dining table. 

She gave him a look before peeking inside the bag where a bunch of produce stared back at her, “I’m good on groceries.”

“No, the little monster was talking my ear off and she asked me I knew how to cook and I told her I knew how to make dumplings just to get her to stop talking but then she wouldn’t stop screaming until I promised to show her how to make some.” He grumbled. 

Heiran’s entire body stopped moving and just stared at him, a rush of conflicting emotions flooding her, “Did you want to make some with her tonight?”

Her voice was so gentle that when he met her gaze, something inside of him liquified, he shoved his hands into his pockets, “I mean, if you don’t have anything else planned.” 

“I think I’ll head out.” Yugyeom said, interrupting them.

She looked at him, confused, “Are you sure? You could stay and make them with us.”

“Nah, I have an early day tomorrow. I’ll take a cab and pick up my car at lunch.” He said.

She nodded, kissing him on the cheek and watched him get into a cab before coming back to the kitchen where Mark began unpacking the groceries. She chewed on the inside of her lip, watching him move distractedly. 

She knew him well enough to know that if Lucy ever asked him for anything, he’d just say no. Doesn’t matter how repetitive or loud she was being, he wasn’t the type to fold for anyone. So seeing him chop cabbage in her kitchen with his sleeves rolled up, gave her pause. 

“Did something happen?” She finally asked. 

He continued cutting before pointing his knife at the small pile of produce, “Help.”

She followed closely, standing next to him and followed his movements. They worked in silence when he broke the stalemate, “I ended things with Yeonhee today.”

“Oh.” She said softly. 

He emptied the chopped vegetables into a bowl and dumped the ground meat before folding it together with a wooden spoon, “It was rough. I think she’s going to hate me for a really long time.”

“I didn’t think you’d do it.” She said quietly.

He brows creased, “Why not?”

“I figured you would think it was too messy.”

He focused on chopping the spring onions, “No, messy was getting involved with a member of Got7 in the first place.”

“What’s life if not a little messy.” She muttered dryly.

“Is your arm okay?” He asked after a beat. 

She nodded slowly, her heart was racing, she felt like she was writing a test, “Barely notice it now. Just a tiny scar.”

Silence ticked by.

“Are _we_ okay?”

She stilled, feeling her breath knocked out of her at the question. She knew that things still felt off since the night of the gala. There was distance and caution placed between them, they may not have addressed the fight they had but they hadn’t forgotten it. Heiran tucked her lips into her mouth, nervous. She didn't know how to answer that question. 

“I’m ready!” Lucy slid into the kitchen, holding her arms out. 

Heiran shared one last look with Mark before bringing a chair next to him and helping Lucy climb up so she stood shoulder to shoulder with him. Heiran moved to the other side of the counter, pouring herself a glass of wine and watched Mark, his expression stonecold serious, as he carefully walked Lucy through the steps of folding the dumplings.

She propped her chin on her hand and took generous sips of her wine. Maybe her mind was a little cloudy but she fawned over the sight in front of her. Lucy’s fingers, albeit clumsy, followed Mark’s skilled ones as he showed her what to do. She wondered if this could’ve been a normal life, if Mark wasn’t a criminal and her father wasn’t poison, maybe she’d meet a man who could love Lucy as his own, who would stand next to her and show her how to cook or help her with her science homework. 

Would it be so wrong to not want to do this alone? 

But she couldn’t romanticize Mark, she learned that the hard way.

“Mom! Come try!” Lucy squealed as she held up a plump, uneven dumpling. 

Heiran winced, “I’m not the best cook, sunshine.”

“Can’t take the heat, duchess?” Mark mused. 

Her eyes slid over to his and he lifted an arched brow. God, he was a smug prick. 

Huffing, she stood and walked around to their side where Mark laid out a little round sheet with a dollop of filling. He grinned, “Hope you were paying attention.”

She rolled her eyes and dipped her finger in the water before dabbing the edges like he had shown Lucy. She leaned close, her brows set in a focused furrow before trying to mimic the neat folds he managed to do. 

It was hard. 

“Here.” Mark mumbled against her ear before gripping her hands and maneuvering them to make the folds neat and clean. She held her breath when his chest pressed against his and she felt like her hands lost their motor control when she stared at his tattooed ones over her plain ones.

He moved away, suddenly vanishing from her side and almost instantly, her fingers jerked and tore the wrap.

She glared at the shreds in front of her, “I can’t—why isn’t this—Mark!”

He leaned against the kitchen counter, “Wow, I knew you’d be bad at this but not this bad.”

“You’re a menace.” She muttered, flinging the remnants to the side. 

He chuckled, nudging her hip with his, “Move, I’ll finish, you keep drinking like a rich white lady.”

She grumbled under her breath but was more than happy to return to her seat and just watch them. She'd watch the way Lucy would trail after him like a kitten but he'd barely glance at her, just moving around her when she'd accidentally get in the way. She was chattering his ear off despite him barely grumbling in response but when she stood took close to the stove where oil was splattering out, Mark fisted the back of Lucy's shirt and pulled her back before Heiran could even stand. He had one hand tending to the food and the other holding Lucy away from the stove, totally unphased at the multi-tasking.

It was wrong. This was all so awfully wrong. 

But when Lucy looked so happy at Mark holding out a piece for her to eat, oblivious to his deadpanned stare, she couldn't find it in her heart to stop Mark from acting like he belonged here. It didn't make sense how people would coo and aww around Lucy and she'd feel nothing towards them but when Mark would stare at her blankly or spit sarcastic barbs that cracked the little girl up, she felt grateful. Lucy's excitement was enough for Heiran to hold back from questioning why Mark would willingly choose to be around her and her daughter when he'd often make it clear he was only around when needed.

She knew deep down that something was wrong.

But she also knew that she could pretend that for one night, everything was fine. 

\-----

“Here.”

Heiran flinched, not realizing Mark had returned to her office and set down a container. She blinked at the Tupperware before looking up at him quizzically. 

He sighed and rolled his eyes, “Leftovers from last night. Eun chewed me out for not making sure you were eating.”

“Thanks but I can’t stomach anything right now.” She mumbled. She craved to be back home and not in the office at work. She used to love being and working here but it was becoming suffocating. People would kill for a corner office with a city view but all she wanted was her old bookshelf and the view of her backyard.

He frowned, “Why? I thought everything was back to normal. Jinyoung told me that Yeonhee’s been on the phone with the Samsung guy for the last few days throwing tantrums so that it’d be more natural when she pulls out of your company.”

“Exactly!” Heiran exclaimed. “SmartLogic is going to pull out and I’m the one that’s going to be on the hook for a multimillion-dollar deal that falls through. I’ve been trying to set up meetings with potential companies but none of them are as promising which means things aren’t looking good for me.”

“She’ll buy you time to figure it out.” He assured.

She didn't look convinced. “Clearly not enough time. In 10 minutes I have to meet with all the VPs from all the departments which means sitting through an hour of them mocking me.

“Mocking you?”

She shot him a blithe look, “Mark I am a woman heading a finance department. These men have been salivating for the chance that I stumble so that they can point and laugh and make remarks about my capabilities. Anyways, enough about that, anything important I need to know about on your end?”

“Nothing substantial.”

“Okay, what about unsubstantial?”

He crossed his arms over his chest. “I was just doing some thinking.”

She pressed her hands to her eyes, “I hate when you do that. Why?”

He shook his head, “It’s just been a while since DS made an attempt on you. I’m antsy. DS is meticulous so this level of silence is concerning."

“Jesus, way to settle my nerves before this meeting.” She grumbled. “Should I be worried?”

He snapped open the Tupperware container and nudged it towards her, “No, there’s no use in you worrying. That’s my job. You just need to make sure you don’t blow your meeting.”

She glared, using a chopstick to stab into a dumpling.

"What'd you do with the painting?" Mark asked.

She sneered, "Shoved it in the back of my closet. I need to get it appraised soon but I can't bear to look at it. Especially with how ugly it is."

Her train of through stumbled when an email notification popped up. Humming, she clicked on it, her eyes skimming the contents as a slow, growing rage built. Mark could see it in how her body tensed, she was like a wild animal that sensed danger and was ready to attack.

“What’s wrong?” He asked.

She slammed her chopsticks down and grabbed a file off the table before storming out with a string of curses like a chant. He gaped at the door before stepping around to see what was on her computer. It was an email sent from an email account with jumbled letters but it was a blind copy. No one on this email thread knew that it was being forwarded to Heiran. 

He scrolled through the messages and his eyes grew wide in shock. It was an entire email chain of executives bad-mouthing and degrading Heiran. He looked at the singular email that Heiran had read and felt his skin crawl. 

**_This company would be a lot better off she spent more time out of her office and on her back. Preferably under me._ **

\-----

When she swung the conference room door open the group of men fell silent and just stared. Clearly she interrupted a conversation that she wasn’t a part of. 

Meaning a conversation about her.

“Afternoon. Am I late?” She said sweetly.

One of the men pulled out the chair next to him, “Not at all, have a seat.”

Her smile tensed as she sat down. The conversation quickly picked up, everyone updating the group on the current status of their departments but she could tell that people were moving quickly to get to her faster.

“So Heiran, after the audit debacle, I’m hearing whispers that the SmartLogic investment is going to fall through. What steps are you currently taking to mitigate that?”

She maintained her composure, “We’re in constant communication with our reps but a large part of SmartLogic’s anxiety stems from our merger with Samsung and they’re currently doing their best to ease their worries.”

A futile attempt for sure. It wouldn’t matter if Samsung promised Yeonhee the moon, that deal was inevitably going to fail.

One of the men, VP of Research and Development, raised his head, “Yes but you should be part of those talks too, you know. You need to be there to guide the conversation and make sure they’re getting through to your representative over there. That's what good leadership is. You need to take responsibility for your project.”

“You don’t need to explain to me how to do my job. I am monitoring and proceeding with SmartLogic the best way I see fit. I have invested years with them and have a solid relationship with their team. Giving them face time with Samsung is what they want, I’ve already did as much as I could but Yuna clearly has issues with their side of it. I can’t control that, but if Samsung plays their cards right, they can get her on board, if not, well that would be out of my hands. You’d know that if this was your job, but it’s not. Your input was…nice, however.” She said, the pause condescending.

The man next to her scoffed, “There’s no need to get so offended, Heiran. We’re just trying to help.”

“Why would I want your help?” She asked with an incredulous laugh, “All your departments are either operating on a stagnancy or a deficit. My department is the only one churning out a profit, even if SmartLogic and the merger were to pull out. If anything, I should be helping you men out on how to increase efficiency.” 

“Don’t get cocky Heiran, I know plenty of men who were more qualified than you who were up for your job. Can you blame us for being skeptical of an affirmative action, hire?” 

She threw her head back and laughed, “Is that what you think? Oh, you poor boys, I’ve seen your personnel files, I outscored all of you on the admissions tests and interviews to get this job, I have more experience and double the degrees. And like I said, my department is the only one showing growth. You lot should be worried about the company wanting to replace you with fresh blood, not me.” 

One day they’d be snickering at her when she loses SmartLogic but fuck she just wanted to crush them in her fist. She can regret not playing nice later. 

The acting VP of Human Resources snorted, “Take down the attitude. You’re not invaluable, Heiran. Don’t make yourself bleed where you already have sharks circling.”

Heiran flipped open the file she brought with her and stood. She picked up the first stack of papers and tossed it at him, “Here are all the harassment complaints that your department has yet to investigate that leave us open for litigation.”

She picked up another and tossed it at the VP of R&D, “Here are your expenses for this year, it’s doubled despite no new earnings the last fiscal year. You’re draining this company for money without anything to show for it.”

She dropped another neatly stapled stack in front of the man next to her, “The accounting department is a dumpster fire. There’s no consistency in the methods used, your team switches from LIFO to FIFO without any notation or explanation.” 

Another stack at another face, “The legal department went to trial for 5 major lawsuits that they could’ve settled out of court for a fraction of the cost if they had a better negotiator. And don’t get me started on the mountain of paperwork that the Admin team has utterly screwed over that has created a bottleneck that’s rendered the department completely useless.”

She glared at them, “So go ahead, tell me how my department needs help when you imbeciles are barely keeping the lights on in yours. The sharks are circling, but they’re not after me. They’re after the weak ones. The ones not watching their backs.”

Heiran braced her palms against the table, “I can spend the next four years _out of my office and_ _on my back_ and I’d still run circles around every single one of you. So do you motherfucking jobs and _pray_ that I don’t get bored at mine and steal yours.”

She shoved herself off the table and dug her heels into the carpeted floor, stalking to the door when she heard the quiet mutter.

“Bitch.” 

She crossed her ankles and spun to face them, “Yeah, I am. But I’m not gonna be the bitch under you, I’m gonna be the bitch that you work for one day.”

\-----

“Oh fuck all of you.” She muttered under her breath as she closed the door behind her. 

Mark slipped next to her, falling in step with her, “Maybe say that a little bit louder next time, preferably in front of them.”

“How long were you out here for?” She hissed as they sped to her office.

His face fell blank, “Waited down the hall until I saw you exit, why?”

She shook her head at him, sending Eun a tight smile before entering her office, “No reason. God my head kills.”

Heiran tried to close the door but he stopped her, “Don’t bother, I need to leave anyway.”

“Where are you going?” She asked with a frown.

He tilted his head, “Do I have to report to you now?”

“I mean…no I was just asking.” She mumbled.

He snorted, “I’ll be back, duchess. Just have an errand to run.”

\-----

“I always thought that men who called women hysterical were over-exaggerating but fuck, did you see her? I thought she was about to scream.” He held his cigarette up to his lips and took a drag. 

The men were sitting in a booth of an expensive bar sipping pretentiously overpriced whiskey. 

“Digging dirt on us? Classy, I’m sure she’d have just as much if we did out own research. Honestly, I don’t understand why that old fart put her in charge.”

“You don’t? I thought it was pretty obvious, it stretched that skirt of hers real tight.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. Even a dinosaur like him is still a man. He probably made her work for it.” 

The round of chortles was cut short when someone dropped down on the empty chair between them and grinned politely, “Gentlemen.” 

They scanned him from top to bottom, taking in the tattooed arms and sharklike smile. One of the men scoffed, “Wrong table kid.”

Mark just smiled and pulled out a piece of paper. He squinted and addressed the group, “Who here is [myungho31@businessmail.com](mailto:myungho31@businessmail.com)?" 

The man next to him smirked and placed his cigarette in between his lips before raising a hand. "Do you want my phone number and forwarding address to?"

Mark smiled and stood, patting him on the shoulder for a beat before everything happened all at once. 

He twisted the man’s raised hand behind his back and took the cigarette out of his mouth before stubbing it out on his knee, making him scream. Everyone else was frozen in shock as they watched their friend’s face twist in pain. Mark let go of the cigarette and used his free hand to grab the back of the man’s head and slam it down on the table. He gripped his tie, wrapping it around his knuckles under it tightened around his throat like a noose.

“I do not have time for men like you. I am a very busy person, so just do me a favor keep Seo Heiran’s name out of your mouths and out of your porny emails, okay? Or else I'm going to have to make another personal visit and trust me, you won't like that.” Mark let go of the man and smiled pleasantly before turning away.

Another man shot up and stared at the bartender incredulously, “Are you going to let him do that?”

Mark looked over at the bartender and gave Jae a dry smile. He blinked back at him before addressing the group of men.

“He can do whatever he wants. He owns this place.”

\-----

“Hey Eun?”

Heiran peeked out from her office door where her assistant sat. Eun hummed and waited expectantly, “I forgot to mention this earlier but thanks for worrying about my meals even though it’s not in your job description.”

“Uh…” Eun blinked at her, “what do you mean?”

Heiran’s smile morphed into an equally confused look, “When you told Mark to get me lunch.”

Eun gasped, “Oh my god, should I have done that? I’m so sorry. I didn—“

“Wait, you…you didn’t tell him?” Heiran asked, confused.

“No. I didn’t.”


	12. Twelfth

Heiran forgot what it was like to sleep in. 

Laying in bed with the sun streaming in and thick white blankets framing her face, Heiran wondered why she always started her work day at 5am before the sun even rose when 11am mornings were far superior. 

She stretched her arms out, her fingers wide and even still, she couldn’t reach the edges of her mattress, that’s how big it was. But at least it was warm, even alone, it was warm and she could roll around without the worry about knocking into another body. 

Another warm body.

What would that be like?

“Mom?”

Heiran pushed her blankets away to sit up a bit better and see Lucy peaking from her door. “Morning, sunshine. What’s going on?”

Lucy scurried in, shivering from the morning chill before scrambling under her warm blankets. Heiran quickly wrapped her arms around her, cuddling her against her chest, “What’s up, baby?”

“Nothing.” Lucy giggled, “I’m just excited.” 

Heiran grinned and pressed a kiss to her temple before tugging lightly on her lopsided pigtails, “First field trip. Did you sleep at all?” 

“Nope!” Lucy squealed as Heiran poked at her sides, tickling her. 

She rolled her daughter over her and hugged her tight, “Take so many pictures and tell me all about it, okay?”

“Promise!” She giggled.

Heiran combed her fingers through her hair, “You know, I got really excited too, I got Yugyeom on the phone to help me make your favourite lunch.”

“Can you pack some of Mark’s dumplings, too?” She asked.

Heiran blinked at her before nodding, “Sure I think we still have some left in the freezer.”

Lucy smiled and shimmied closer to her to rest her head against her neck. Heiran felt her heart buzz, it had been a while since she and Lucy had this sort of peacefulness. It was always filled with work and classes and lessons, it felt rare to just lay here with her. 

“You really Mark, huh?” Heiran whispered to the ceiling.

Lucy hummed, “He’s the best.” 

“Even when he’s mean?” She asked.

Lucy sat up and look down at her mom, “When was he mean?”

“Like when he ignores you or calls you those silly nicknames.” 

Lucy laughed, “Yeah but he isn’t mean. He told me that he’s just grumpy. You know, some people would’ve told me to shut up or stop talking, he doesn’t do that. He just…lets me. I think he likes it when I talk because I make him less grumpy. I think he just pretends.” 

Heiran’s lips were parted in awe of the intellect and emotional capacity this little girl was capable of holding, “Like you’re made of sunshine.”

Lucy nodded with a beam before clinging back onto her mother. Glancing at the time, Heiran leaned back down closed her eyes, falling asleep cuddled against Lucy for another hour until an insistent knocking woke her up.

Not properly thinking, she called out groggily, “Come in.”

“Hey, you’re still not up?” 

Heiran sat up, her fingers curling into Lucy when Mark pushed the door open. She wasn’t used to him seeing her in the morning, still in bed and not properly dressed. 

“Yeah, I took the day off today and Lucy has a field trip. What are you doing here?” She asked.

He couldn’t help himself, his eyes darting around her sleep mused hair, goosebumps on her arms and a flush on her skin. She looked so warm and cozy. Lucy screamed and stood up on the bed before leaping down and grabbing onto Mark’s pants. 

“Mark! Mark! You’re here! I’m going on a field trip to the zoo, we’re going to see so many animals. Have you ever been to the Seoul Zoo? They have real giraffes there.” She asked. 

Mark winced, awkwardly patting her on the head before trying to pry her off of him, “Good for you. I need to talk to you about that actually, duchess. Do you…do you mind telling her to let go?”

“Lucy, why don’t you go get ready. You have to leave soon anyway.” 

She squeezed Mark one last time before racing out the door. Heiran stepped out from under her covers and Mark was quick to reach for her robe and hand it to her. He didn’t need nightmares of her legs either, he already had a few of those. 

“What’s going on?” She asked with a frown. 

He followed her to her bathroom, sitting on the side of her tub while she brushed her teeth. “Do you think letting her go on a field trip is a good idea?”

Heiran shot him a look through the mirror and spit out the paste, “Well, yeah, she’ll be with her class and zoos aren’t busy this time of year. What? You think they’ll go after her?”

“It’s just that she’ll be away from her school, it’s a new environment where strangers can get close to her. I don’t know, with DS being so quiet I’m starting to think they’ve laid off of coming at you directly, once they realized how close by I was. They might try to get to you through her.” Mark asked. 

She washed her mouth, her actions a bit more frantic, “Okay well, I don’t think I can ask her not to go. She’s so excited, you saw her. But—oh I think I have it somewhere.”

She raced out to her bedroom and began rifling through drawers before pulling out a folded piece of paper, “Here, it’s a permission slip for parental volunteers. It’s last minute but I’m sure they could use the help.”

“What if I went?”

Heiran froze, pen over paper, and stared at him, “You—what?”

“Listen, I really don’t want to spend any extra time than needed with the little gremlin, but having the two of you together on your own is dangerous. It’d be better if I went with her, especially since I have to play by your rules of prioritizing her.” He said, taking the pen from her.

She hesitated, “I guess, but like, it’s for parents, and no offense, they might feel weird about a stranger and your tattoos.” 

“Some of her teachers have gotten to know me when I pick her up.” He reasoned. 

Heiran wrapped her arms around herself before sighing in resignation, “Okay, but just to be safe.”

He watched her pull a box out from under her cabinet and turn her back to him to shuffle around before taking something out and tucking the box back into its hiding place. She faced him and held her palm out.

It was a ring. 

“What the fuck?” He blurted, his eyes darting from the ring and her.

She huffed before taking his hand and slipping it on, “Don’t have a freak attack, it’s an old promise ring but it kinda looks like a wedding band. If anyone asks, just say we’re married, they don’t know about my personal life so they’ll believe you.”

Mark frowned, fisting his hand and staring at the stainless steel on his knuckle. It was cutting his blood flow off and despite wearing rings before, this one felt especially tight. “Right…well, Jinyoung will stop by to keep an eye on things here so that you're not entirely vulnerable either. He isn’t really…hands on but I know leaving you and Jackson or Yeonhee in a room together isn’t the best bet.”

“Yeah, that’s fine.” She distractedly. 

He watched her chew on her lip with a crease in her brows, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing new. My daughter's life is at risk and I just can’t stand the thought of something happening to her while I’m here and can’t do anything to help.”

“I’ll be with her. She’ll be fine.” He assured.

She rubbed her forehead, “I know. I know. I can’t help but worry.”

“You’re worried? What about me? In the span of 10 seconds I somehow gained a wife and daughter?” He said, exasperated.

She laughed hoarsely before following him out, “Text me updates. I’ll be there in a second if she needs something.”

“Yeah, I think I’m going to be swatting you away with a stick.” He muttered, “Hey little monster, let’s get going, five minutes or I'm looking at giraffes without you.”

Lucy ran across the living room, carrying her lunch bag. She hugged Heiran tightly before rushing to put her shoes on. Heiran followed them to the door and called out to Mark just as he got in the car. 

“I want that ring back, by the way.”

\-----

“You can set your stuff up here. Do you need anything else?” Heiran asked as Jinyoung began pulling a heavy-duty laptop out of his bag and setting it up.

The tips of his ears burned red as he shook his head, “No, I’m okay, your house is huge and it's so nice.”

She laughed, “Thanks, but a little obnoxious, right?”

“It’s better than Mark who only uses his money to invest and barely spends it.” Jinyoung muttered.

She raised her brows, “Invest in what?”

“He bought a bar, he’s pretty hands off the operations other than hiring the staff. He just gets the profit and refuses to spend it on his best friend.” Jinyoung explained.

This intrigued her, she never pegged him for someone who had a side hustle much less a businessman, “Woah, is it like a front for something?”

“No!” Jinyoung said, panic in his eyes, “Fuck, maybe I shouldn’t have said anything. I should just shut up.”

She sat down next to him, interest piqued, “I’ll show you the research paper I’m working on if you dish.”

“Wait…really?” He asked, eyes wide. 

She bit her lip and nodded, “It’s for an academic journal. I haven’t been working on it lately but it's a passion project. I can let you read over what I have finished so far.”

“Deal. Oh my god. So, actually it’s not a front, it’s a legit business. I was suspicious at first too, but I saw his books. He's as clean as can be. He does have one of the leaders of an allied gang working in it but he’s a good guy and…and this is a secret, but our Boss, I mean—your dad, doesn’t know Mark has it.” Jinyoung whispered.

Heiran’s eyes widened and leaned close to him, “No. Fucking. Way.”

Jinyoung huddled closer, eyes darting around, “I’m dead serious. It’s an unspoken rule that we have to disclose any side business that may be a risk to the gang. Mark opened it last year in a fancy part of town and hired one of our allies to work in it because…well because Mark felt guilty. He gets me to hide the money in an offshore account and Jae, the guy he's working with, swore to never speak of it.”

“Why does he feel guilty? And why is he hiding it?”

“Mark always felt that Jae’s gang Day6 was a small-time operation. They never got violent or got involved with the big leagues. After we allied with them, they’ve been forced to deal with some really fucked up stuff. I think Mark just wanted to give the leader an escape. He’s a really good kid, kinder than he should be in this business. And Mark hides the money because he said he doesn’t want anyone to find it and start asking questions but I always wondered if he was saving up in the case that one day he’d leave Got7.” Jinyoung explained. 

She felt a little dizzy with all this info, now she wished she didn’t dig for more, “Wow, I-I never thought he’d ever plan to leave. I figured he’d either stay long enough to see the gang fall apart or die on the job.”

“Dark.” Jinyoung deadpanned. 

She winced, “Sorry. I just meant, I never thought he’d leave by choice.”

“Mark is a planner. He plans for every possibility, no matter how bleak. He knows it’s likely he won’t be here forever and honestly, I don’t think he’d want to, even though he’d never admit it. People act like he's next in line to run the gang, but he doesn't like being a leader. As long as he’s with Got7, he’ll be loyal. I just know him well enough to know that one day he’ll just disappear without as much as a letter and stay gone.” Jinyoung said. 

She shook her head, "But you just said he'd be loyal."

"A loyal dog is loyal until it's threatened." 

She fell silent and he watched her carefully, taking in the thoughtful silence, hoping to tell her this wouldn't blow up in his face, before letting out a breath, “That must be hard to do.”

“What do you mean?” He asked.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to humanize what you do but he’s worked with Got7 since he was a teenager, right? Imagine having to come up with a plan that involves leaving everything about your life behind.” She said quietly. 

Jinyoung sighed, “He didn’t tell you much about his life, right?”

“He isn’t really the type, is he?” She snorted. 

Jinyoung laughed, “But seriously, I know it’s hard to see him as anything other than his job, I think he struggles with that too but deep down he’s a good person trying to survive in a shitty situation. His life is a lot more fucked up than you can imagine.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” She said quietly.

He shifted awkwardly, “Mark trusted me because we’re really close but other than me and Jae, no one else knows. Not Yeonhee, no one. So please don’t tell anyone that you know.”

She nodded, “Yeah, I promise.”

She was stunned, it was dawning on her that she didn’t know much about Mark at all, even after all he knew about her she realized a stranger held everything she held dear to her in the palm of his hands.

\-----

“What do I owe this fucking disgrace?” The Boss grumbled when DS strode into his office. 

His smile was slow and smarmy as he inspected his surroundings. “Don’t be so rude, we’re all in this position because of you.”

“Like you aren’t getting a fucking kick out of it too.” He snarled. 

DS leaned against the wall and laughed, “I didn’t ask for this to happen.”

“Why are you even here? It’s not like I’m hiding her in my office.” He snarled. 

DS quirked a brow, “I just wanted to stop by and get familiar with your headquarters, considering it’ll all be mine, soon. I can't wait until I own you." 

“Give me a break. You’re a newbie, I’ve been doing this for over 20 years. You’ve been at this for five fucking minutes. You wouldn’t be able to handle a kingdom this large.” The Boss hissed. "You're in over your head to even _think_ you can come for Got7's territory much less making a run at me." 

DS was unphased, a mask of pure calmness, “Hmm, yes, I’m sure your daughter is really impressed with your kingdom. Is that why she won’t come within 100 miles of you?”

“Shut the fuck up.” He growled.

“This could be a lot easier for both of us, you know that. _You’re_ making this a lot more complicated than it needs to be.” DS mused.

He scoffed, “The minute my daughter got involved, it was always going to be complicated.”

“Funny.” DS said while running a finger against the bookshelf next to him. He inspect his finger for dust, “I almost believe you.”

For a man so old and who held such seniority, his anger was not hidden well, “Get the hell out before I kill you myself. I won’t even care if it starts the biggest war this city has seen, I'll put you down. Get out of my sight.”

DS chuckled and headed for the door, “Don’t underestimate me. You don’t call the shots, I run this game and it’s only a matter of time before I run this whole fucking town.”

\-----

“And you are?”

God, Mark hated these nosy mothers eyeing him suspiciously as he stood with Lucy. Even the teachers were fine with him coming along but somehow these other moms were being so much worse. The second he came out with Lucy to the parking lot, it was like all their eyes zeroed in on him with the accuracy of a sniper.

“I’m Lucy’s guardian.” He said blankly. 

He felt Lucy’s little hand curl up against the hem of his shirt, she probably felt the air from their noses that were turned so high up. The women tilted their heads at him, “Meaning?”

He ran his fingers through his hair and all their eyes went directly to the ring on his finger, “Oh, you’re her husband.”

Lucy’s grip tightened and he could feel her piercing stare but she didn’t call him out on the blatant lie. “Yeah, I am.”

“Huh, I never thought she would re-marry.” Another spoke. It was incredible how quickly they were able to drop one subject and jump to the next.

He pursed his lips at them, “How are you so sure she was married before?”

They gaped at him before they all collectively glanced at Lucy. The little girl flinched and tucked herself behind his leg, away from their glare. His finger found the top of her head, holding her. 

“Didn’t realize a ring worked like a condom.”

The women looked scandalized, “You’re okay marrying a woman who had a child out of wedlock?”

“She’s a good mother, that’s all I’m bothered about.” He replied dryly. "Don't really care where the kid came from, she's here now so as long as she's being raised right who gives a fuck, right?"

They were appalled but Mark was angrier. It was one thing for them to gossip among themselves but it was annoying that they’d do it in front of the child. He had seen and heard far worse as a kid but it didn’t make this okay.

The older woman of the group shook her head, “I supposed it’s something with your generations. They don’t care about the future, they just have…intercourse with whoever they want and then when they realize they have to raise a kid on their own because the man runs away, they find the first man, without worrying if he’s a suitable father and get married. I mean really, Heiran is a fine mother and has a lot of money, she doesn't really socialize with us but even still…”

She spared a look at his tattoos, “no offense, I'm sure you're doing a decent job with what you can but she clearly is blinded by the same _lust_ that gave her a child at such a young age. They pick someone because they're attractive and not because they'd be a good parent. This is why young single mothers are just too immature and idealistic to raise children.”

Mark fell silent, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the side of Lucy’s head when she buried her face against his thigh. “You’re married?”

The woman nodded, “Of course.”

“So, by that logic, you have raised your kid well?” He asked.

She scoffed, “Without a doubt.”

Mark nodded before letting his gaze fall over her shoulder, his lips hitching up, “Interesting. Well, it was nice talking to you all, we should board the bus. Oh, by the way, isn’t that your kid eating sand over there?”

Her eyes widened, her face red as she spun around.

“Brian! Get that out of your mouth, I swear to god!”

\-----

He sat next to Lucy, he was aiming for the empty seat in the back by the emergency exit but when he passed Lucy, she stared up at him and moved to the window, freeing up the seat. 

“What?” He grit out when she wouldn’t stop boring holes into the side of his head.

She inched closer and whispered so that no one could hear her, “You’re not really married to mom, right?”

“No, I’m not.” He said blankly. 

He couldn’t read the expression on her face when she nodded, “Then why did you lie?”

“Because your school wouldn’t let me come with you otherwise.”

“Why did you need to come with me?” God, why couldn’t she just stare out the window and ignore him completely? These questions were giving him a headache.

“To keep you safe.” He said curtly.

She was all the more curious, “From what?”

“The tigers.”

\-----

The rest of the field trip wasn’t that bad. 

Most of the time the kids just huddled together, following their teacher and a zoo guide from each enclosure where they’d learn a set of interesting facts before trying to wave their arms at the animals in an attempt to get their attention. 

But it got weird when they reached the seal enclosure. Everyone was standing on bleachers but even on her tiptoes, Lucy could barely see over everyone’s head. He glanced over at her and noticed her staring at one of the dads who had lifted their son onto their shoulders. He tried to ignore the look on her face and just switched spots with her but she was back on her toes. 

When she sighed and resigned herself to staring at the backs of everyone’s heads, he cursed under his breath and tapped her on the shoulder, “Do you want a lift?”

Her eyes widened, “Really?”

“Yeah why not? You’re already a pain, might as well make you a physical one too.” He huffed before crouching down next to her. 

She clapped excitedly before swinging her legs around his shoulders. He held her ankles and stood, her hands coming up to hug his head. Once she was comfortable, she began petting his hair, “Wow, it’s soft.”

“God, just pay attention.” He hissed.

One of the mom’s next to him cooed, “You’re such a sweet family."

He didn’t bother responding and desperately wished they could just go home and he could go back to his decrepit apartment. The last few days have been too much of this weird domestic family bullshit. 

So when he set her down after the seal show, he kept a distance, trying to remind himself that someone else’s ring and someone else’s daughter did not make a family. 

The day continued like that and he wasn’t sure if Lucy could tell but she had become quiet and just observed and listened to the teachers. She wasn't laughing with her friends or participating in the discussions. When they were given permission to wander around for 15 minutes, Mark trailed after her tiredly as she inspected each enclosure, taking photos and writing notes in a tiny notepad.

He spotted her lingering by one of the cages and went up behind her. She was studying the little placard in front of the elephants before turning her face up to watch as a baby elephant raced after its mother. 

She must have heard him come up before she looked over her shoulder at him and pointed at the enclosure, “Did you know that elephant families are led by the mother elephant? Male elephants leave the family when they’re teenagers but the female elephants…they stay. They protect the herd.”

“Mothers…can sometimes be like that.” He said 

She tried climbing the fence but struggled until Mark grabbed her by the backpack and held her up until she could grip the fence and wedge her toes between the gaps. One of the elephants walked by, not close enough to touch but close enough to feel the rumble of its footsteps. 

“Sometimes?” She asked. 

Mark stared at the magnificent animal as it used its trunk to break off a branch from a tree, “Sometimes mothers can also be like those birds who leave their young the minute they’re born.”

“Was your mom like that?” Her eyes were curious.

Mark let out long breath and watched one of the bigger elephants use its trunk to help pick up a calf that had stumbled and fallen over. “A little bit.” 

“Does it make you sad?” She asked. 

Mark fought a smile, “Are you my therapist?”

“I could be.” She grinned. 

Wise beyond her years couldn’t begin to describe her. She was this tiny little creature that could read complex emotions and understand what they mean the way most adults couldn't. 

“Do you think your mom is like an elephant?” He asked.

She hummed, “Yeah, I think she is. Elephants feel loss too. They mourn when their kids die.”

“Why would you say that?” He asked with an unsettled look. 

She looked up at him and the pain in her eyes startled him, “That’s why you came today, isn’t it? To make sure nothing happens to me or else mom would be sad.”

“She’d be devastated.” He said, unprepared for the softness that entered his tone. 

“You’re not really her personal assistant, are you?” She asked in a quiet voice.

He contemplated lying, he knew it was one of Heiran’s rules but frankly he could tell that she wouldn’t believe a lie. She clearly knew more than she had been letting on, but he knew there was only so much he could tell her if she asked him more.

“No, I’m not.”

Lucy climbed down and turned to him with her hands clasped behind her back, “I’m glad you’re around, Mark.”

He raised a brow and trailed after her as she went to join the rest of her class, “Why’s that? Because I look after you and your mom?”

She shook her head without looking back at him, “No, because you stop her from being sad.” 

\-----

Heiran and Jinyoung hung out in silence after their conversation. She’d flutter around the house, doing little errands while also enjoying the free time. She found an old recipe and attempted to cook it. She turned off her sprinklers and watered her yard with a hose, she did all the menial tasks that she had pushed off on someone else. 

“How have you not tired yourself out?” Jinyoung gaped. 

She grinned, panting as she dragged an oversized potted plant by her driveway. “I worked like 3 jobs and balanced school when I was younger, I don’t know what exhaustion is.” 

He shook his head just as her phone rang. She pulled her gardening gloves off with her teeth and answered the call, “Hello?”

“Hello, Ms. Seo? This is Lucy’s school, we’re calling because the field trip was cut short today and all the kids have returned to the school and in need of being picked up.” 

She frowned, “Lucy is with her guardian, he’ll be driving her home.”

“I’m sorry I’m a bit confused, Lucy came off the bus with her peers. Her guardian wasn’t with her. She said she couldn’t find him.” 

Heiran shot Jinyoung a panicked look before running into the house to gather her things, “Okay, okay, I’m coming now, will a teacher stay with her until I get there?”

“Yes of course, but is there something we should be concerned about in regards to her guardian? He was with her during the trip but none of the parents know where he went.”

“Umm…I’m sure we just miscommunicated about pick up. I’ll be there now. Thank you so much for calling.” 

She hung up and grabbed her bag as Jinyoung rounded the corner, “What’s going on?”

Heiran slung her purse over her shoulder and dialed Mark’s number, “Mark just disappeared. Lucy made it back to the school because the trip cut short but Mark wasn’t with her. No one knows where he is and fuck—his phone is going straight to voicemail.”

“What the fuck?” Jinyoung took out his phone and made a call and it too went to voicemail. 

She picked up her keys and headed for the door, “I need to go pick her up but keep calling him or tracking him, this isn’t right.” 

\-----

Heiran pulled up to the school and looked around for the school bus before entering Lucy’s school.

She sent Mark a text as she walked through the halls.

**Where are you??? School called that the trip cut short. I’m here to pick her up. You aren't answering my calls.**

Frowning, she continued towards Lucy’s classroom, her heels making the only clicking sound, echoing off cubbies. She stood in front of the classroom door and felt her heart race.

It was empty and the lights were off. 

She turned to the cubbies for Lucy’s class and noticed that none of their backpacks, jackets, and shoes were there. 

“What the fuck?” She muttered. 

Her phone buzzed and she glanced at it, seeing Mark's name before answering.

"Hey wh--"

"Where are you?" His voice was tense and it sounded like he was running.

"At Lucy's school. Didn't you get my messages?" She asked, frustrated.

"You need to get out. Now." His tone was dark and she could hear Lucy asking him questions in the background.

Anxiety flushes through her as she started heading to the front door. Lucy was with him which meant she wasn't at school like she was told, "Mark, what's going on?

"The trip wasn't cut short. We're still here. You're being set up. Go home. I'm coming."

Feeling the panic rush through her, she broke into a run only to be pulled back by her arm and have something press against her nose.

Her vision turned fuzzy before fading into complete darkness. 


	13. Thirteenth

When she woke up, the first thing that she realized was that it wasn’t cold. 

It was _frigid_. 

She couldn’t stop shivering and it only intensified when she realized that she couldn’t see and that the last thing she remembered before the cold was the panic in Mark’s voice when he said that she was being set up. Then the alarms in her brain went off and she realized that everything about this situation was wrong and that she was in severe danger right now. 

Gasping for air, Heiran struggled against the ropes that bound her to the chair. A whimper escaped her as her heart pounded in her chest and gripped her throat. Her body was sore and the back of her neck felt stiff, how long had she been held like this for? She couldn’t make out where she was. There were no sounds that gave away where she was being held. She could be in another city, another country, she could've had surgery where they stole her organs and she'd be none the wiser.

She had no idea where she was or what had happened to her aside from the fact that DS had to be the one responsible. 

And that only sent another rush of fear through her.

“She’s up.” 

She froze at the voice. She hadn’t expected anyone else to be in the room with her. Fuck, how many people were here? Had they just been watching her this entire time? Had they done anything to her?

“She’s prettier than I thought.” 

This voice was different. That meant there were at least two. 

The first voice snickered, “Boss always liked a nice pair of legs.”

She wanted to throw up, curl into a ball and plead for her life. They wanted her dead, that was why they had targeted her in the first place and now that they had her right in front of them. How long before they finish the job? Why hadn't they done it already?

“Don’t get too close, we’re not supposed to do anything until he gets here.”

“What about Mark? Got7’s going to send him in here after her and…you saw what he did to our other men.” 

“Fuck, you’re right. I saw his prosthetic hand. Don’t remind me. When’s DS going to get here?” 

“I texted him when she started to wake up. He’ll be here soon.”

She felt one of the men get near and flinched when a clammy hand landed on her bare knee. Too much information was coming at her and with her eyes covered, her other senses were overwhelming her, “What do you think he’s going to do to her?”

“I don’t know, but I hope he lets us watch.” One of them cackled. 

He drummed his finger against her skin and she wanted to claw at his face, scar him for life the same way they were scarring her, “Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’m sure it won’t hurt.”

“Can’t say the same about you.” She spat, her voice hoarse.

“Aww, the princess has claws. You have a lot of confidence in your little bodyguard, don’t you?”

She tilted her head up at him, even blindfolded, “Yeah, underestimate me. That’ll be fun.”

“There’s no doubting she’s with Got7 with that mouth on her. A lot jumpier though, isn’t she?” One of them snorted.

“I heard it’s because she’s never in the field. Committing all those crimes but walks around in fancy office buildings and tall heels like she's a regular pencil pusher. It's almost genius if it wasn't so stupid.” 

She scoffed, "You're the stupid ones, coming after me. You think Got7 is just going to sit around and do nothing? You don't know how important to them I am."

Something hard banged into the back of her head, making her scream in pain, she could feel the blow explode through her skull. A voice appeared in front of her face, hot breath brushing against her, "Oh trust me, we know. "

“That cute daughter of yours, is the baby daddy in Got7?” 

Her body tensed and it must’ve been obvious because the men laughed, “I guess it’s true. Which one was it? Jackson? I know he messes around a lot, doesn’t seem like the type to wrap it. Or was it Jinyoung? He looks quiet but I bet usually the quiet ones are the freakiest.”

She was shaking in anger, panting, “Shut the fuck up.”

“Ohh, or was it Mark? All brooding and scary but he dicks you down on the regular until you’re knocked up. Yeah, you look like the type that acts all tough and intimidating but probably begs like a bitch in heat when he's in you. Did he tell you not to keep her? Or did he just pay you off so he doesn't need to be involved? Is that why he’s all over your daughter and is assigned to you? That’s why he left you to protect her? Because she—Fuck!”

She had reeled back and smashed her head against his with a loud growl. She ignored the pain that exploded through her skull just took satisfaction in his agonized screams and yells. She could feel blood trickle down the bridge of her nose but it didn't bother her. Even the harsh smack to the side of her face that came as punishment couldn’t make her feel bad; she was angry and furious. They can beat her up all they want, they can torture, hell they can even kill her if they wanted, but she would _not_ let them slander Lucy or her father.

“Screw you.” She spat. 

Something cold and sharp pressed against her neck, felt a lot like a knife, and she craned her neck away on instinct. 

“Not so bold now, are you princess?”

She held her breath when the other man finally intervened. “Stop. Boss will get mad if something happens to her without his direction. He wants to make sure Got7 knows the stakes first.”

The pressure of the knife vanished.

“You got lucky this time, princess.”

\-----

There was a ringing in Mark’s ears as he pulled up to Heiran’s house where Jinyoung and Yeonhee were waiting for him.

It was like he couldn’t quite believe it. It didn't fully feel real yet. He almost expected Heiran to be standing by the door, telling him to hurry up and telling Lucy to make sure she washed up before eating. But it wasn't her. Her house was empty, cold, soulless now. 

She was kidnapped.

And it was done at her school where he’d have no footage or way to track her movements. It was the perfect way for them to come for her, wait until he was distracted and then lure her with the one thing that she would be completely at the mercy to.

He just let her be taken. 

He fucked up. He made a bad call. He left her with Jinyoung. 

He did this. It was all because of him. 

And now she was in DS’s reach and he had no idea where to find her or what was being done to her.

Maybe she was already dead and her corpse was being delivered to Got7’s headquarters as we speak.

“Who are they?” Lucy quipped. 

It was hard remaining balanced with how clueless Lucy was. She was just smiling and drowsy from the trip with no idea that her mother was missing and in danger and he had to play along.

Fuck, what would happen to her if Heiran was dead? Did she have relatives? Would she be an orphan?

“Friends. They’ll be watching you for a while.” He said monotonously. 

“Where are you going to go?” She asked.

He tightened his grip around the steering wheel, “Errands for your mom.”

Lucy hummed, satisfied, and hopped out of the car when he parked. He stayed inside for an extra second, steadying his hands and closing his eyes. No matter how put together he seemed, his insides were spinning. He had never messed up this bad before. Every assignment he was given was carried out with the utmost precision, he was never late, he never misfired, he never killed the wrong person. He never made mistakes. 

And yet the one time he did, he wasn't sure he was going to make up for it. Ever.

Opening his eyes, he stared at the steel ring snug around his finger. It pissed him off. Rings were for commitment, for trust and he knew he wasn't deserving of either and this just made it all the more clear. 

He slowly pulled the ring off his finger and dropped in the cupholder.

“Hurry up and get out.” Yeonhee barked from the other side of the car.

Sighing, Mark slid out of the car, slamming the door behind him. Lucy scurried over to him, lingering behind his leg as he walked towards Yeonhee and Jinyoung. 

“I can’t believe this happened,” Jinyoung muttered. “I shouldn’t have let her go on her own.”

Yeonhee snorted, “This was your only job and you managed to fuck it up in the worst way. How on earth do you outsource bodyguarding?”

“Not in front of her, for the love of god.” Mark grumbled, his hand pressing against Lucy’s head.

Yeonhee scoffed with a roll of her eyes but Jinyoung crouched down and smiled at her, “You’re Lucy, right?” 

She curled her fingers around his pants and nodded, “Hi.”

“Hi! Your mom told me all about you. She said you’re really smart.” He cooed. “Wanna go in and show me some of the things you know?"

Her face lit up and she nodded again. Mark let out a breath and patted her stiffly on her head, “Go inside. Jinyoung’s going to look after you today.”

She glanced at Jinyoung before looking at Yeonhee who just scowled at her. Lucy shrunk under her gaze and looked up at Mark, “Will you come back?”

Mark paused, staring into her little curious eyes before looking away, “Hurry up.”

Lucy cut him a look before and ran into the house. The minute she was out of sight, Yeonhee laughed dryly. 

“Don’t you make such a cute dad?” She taunted. 

“Guys, not now. We need to do something. I’ve been trying to track her phone but it keeps pinging near the school which means whoever took her dumped her phone too. Fuck. Fuck. I should’ve known that the entire thing was a ploy to separate you from her so that she’d be alone.” Jinyoung said, his voice shaking.

Yeonhe crossed her arms and frowned, “Why did you even follow the kid to the zoo? You should’ve stayed with Heiran, she’s the target. What were you thinking?”

Mark glared at her, “It’s complicated.” 

“What now? How are we supposed to get her back?” Jinyoung asked.

Mark shook his head, “ _We_ aren’t doing anything. You will stay here, look after her kid and see if you can find any info on your laptop about where she might be. I’m the one going to find her.”

“A hero.” Yeonhee said blankly.

“No,” Jinyoung said quietly, realization sinking in, “you’re not doing this to be a hero. You’re doing this so that the Boss doesn’t blame me. What the hell, Mark? It’s my fault too. I should take the heat.”

Mark tensed, “No. It’s not important for you to take responsibility right now, it won't get her back any faster. I’m the one who asked you to help when I should’ve done a better job myself. All I need to worry about is getting her back.”

“We have no idea where she is. They could've taken her anywhere in this city.” Yeonhee muttered. "Jinyoung said that they were trying to reach you a dozen times. What happened?"

Mark tugged on his hair until his scalp burned, "We were in this fucking cave to look at snakes or some shit and I didn't have service until we got out and that's when I saw her messages."

"Fuck, so you dump me but call me to help clean up your messes with her." Yeonhee muttered.

Jinyoung's eyes widened at the new information and looked quickly between the two of them. Mark had never gotten the chance to tell him how his arrangement with her has come to a firm stop. His brow ticked in irritation, "First of all, I asked Jinyoung to come, _he's_ the one that brought you. And second, I'm not asking you to help with anything."

"None of this is important." Jinyoung said quietly, "We don't even know where you're going to start looking for her. DS knows this city just as well as we do and he has people everywhere."

Mark’s phone buzzed, pulling his attention away from Jinyoung and to his phone where ‘BOSS’ blinked at him. “Fuck.”

Jinyoung began pacing, “Oh god he knows she’s missing. What if DS sent him a finger? I’m coming with you. He’s going to kill you.”

“I don’t care if you are panicking - just…do it quietly.” Mark hissed out to Jinyoung before answering the call.

“Get over here. NOW!”

\-----

It could’ve been hours and she wouldn’t know better but at least she had adapted to the cold.

For the most part, she was left alone but she’d hear the lewd threats that came from the men watching her. At first, she’d fire back with sarcasm, but she was getting tired and it was making her anxious. She just wanted them to get it over with at this point. 

Just pull the trigger.

Bring the knife.

Whatever they were going to do, she wanted it done. 

“You know I have a daughter, right?” She asked quietly. “You’ve made threats against her so I know that you know about her.”

She heard shuffling but no one said anything to acknowledge that they heard her. It was driving her insane that she couldn’t see. 

“Listen, I-I don’t know what you want from me. Or what your boss wants. But I know it’s revenge. He wants me dead? Fine. Jus-just please leave my daughter alone. If he kills me don’t let him touch her. She’s innocent. Please don’t hurt her.”

She could feel her tears soak through whatever was covering her eyes. Her tears dripped down her chin and it was harder and harder for her to pull herself together. It was all her fear and terror pouring out.

“Please don’t hurt her. She’s just a baby. She’s my baby.” She rasped.

“Boss.” A voice said stiffly. The sound of a door slamming shut indicated that someone had entered. DS.

She let out a shaky breath, “Please just kill me if that’s what you want. Don’t touch my daughter.”

Her throat caught when a light touch brushed her hair back and tucked it behind her ear. She turned away, trying to duck out of their reach but she was bound to a chair and they had the upper hand. 

A gentle touch to her cheek and she knew whoever was touching her wasn’t the same person from before. Maybe it wasn’t DS at all. “M-Mark?”

God she wished.

She’d pay to hear _duchess_ right now.

“Who are you worth more to? Mark or your father?”

His voice was low, almost a whisper as if just for her to hear. Her mind was moving too fast that all she could really make sense of was the fact that whoever it was, was new. 

“How do you know he's my father?” She gasped out. Her breathing was loud, she could hear it in her ears. She flinched away upon realization, “Are you…are you DS?”

He knew. He knew she was the daughter of Got7's leader. They must've known all along.

The touch was pulled away from her and she could feel the gust of air that came with him moving back. His voice was more distant but she could still hear him, “Leave her here. I’m waiting to hear back from them before we do anything else.”

“Yes, sir.”

She could hear the locks on the door turn, there had to be at least three, before the man spoke, “Don’t touch her, yet. We don’t make a move until they do.”

“Wait!” She called out, panic growing up her throat like bile, “Please don’t leave. Please. I have nothing to do with this or you. Stay! Please!”

But the door shut and she was left alone again, except for her two captors.

She wished they actually listened to him.

Fortunate wasn’t exactly the best word, they still ripped open her blouse just to strike fear in her, knowing that her mind would leap to worse case scenarios and she'd become complacent. They still slapped her when she got loud or angry but she knew if they wanted, they could kill her, they could cause her irreparable harm. 

At this point, she was grateful she hadn’t heard the sound of a gun clicking near her head. She could taste the sharp metallic tang of blood in her mouth and she wasn’t sure if it was because of the beatings or her own teeth clamping down on her skin.

She felt fingers clench into her hair and yank her head back, “You really think daddy’s going to send someone for you?”

“Worried about what will happen if he sends Mark?” She fired back. It was clear Mark made them all nervous.

The men laughed and tightened the grip on her hair, “No, I think you should be worried about if Mark is willing to come here at all. He might just leave you here to die.”

\-----

More time had passed, she wasn’t sure how much but enough that she was hungry and it made her livid.

How could she be hungry at a time like this?

The men in the room had left and it was a moment of relief. She had tried to scrunch her face in an attempt to wiggle the blindfold down her face to get a glimpse of where she was held but it was useless. She tried pressing her feet flat against the floor and try to stand, but it was useless. The hunger was making her tired but she refused to sleep. 

Her gut dropped when time ticked by and she realized that Mark had no way of finding her. She was taken at the school, no witnesses, no paper or digital trail that would lead him to her. How was he supposed to know where to begin to look? 

Assuming he was looking for her at all.

Clearly DS must be reaching out to her father with a ransom or some sort of demand or else he would've hurt her already. Well, hurt her more than his goons currently were. 

Why would he do that?

It didn’t make sense that he’d give her father a chance to get her back. 

Oh.

They weren’t going to kill her at all. 

It had to be that.

They needed her alive for something, either they were going to betray Got7 when they came for her by killing her _and_ taking whatever ransom Got7 paid or DS wanted something from them, something more than her life, something they'd be willing to give her up for. Which meant something that was going to cost Got7 a lot.

Maybe this entire thing was less about her and more about getting revenge on her father over whatever turf war that gangs like DS and Got7 have.

That gave her a sliver of hope. 

When the door creaked open, she stiffened, straightening her back to appear more alert. The pain ringing through every inch of her body barely registered with her anymore. It had all amalgamated into one single numbing ache that she had learned to ignore. She wondered if she looked black and blue though. 

She only heard one pair of footsteps and a chair being dragged towards her. Once whoever got close enough, she could smell the scent of food wafting towards her. 

Damn, that smelled good. 

She tensed her stomach to avoid it from rumbling. A firm hand gripped her chin and her instinct was to twist out of their hold, swinging her head from side to side, but they just held her harder. The grip was used to tilt her head to different angles before she was released. 

“Let me go.” She demanded. 

Nothing was said to her, instead, a spoon was pressed against her lips. What if it was drugged? She tucked her lips into her mouth and turned her face away. The spoon was persistent and after squeezing her cheeks, it was shoved into her mouth. Heiran should’ve spat out the food but the minute it hit her tongue, she swallowed. She was starved.

Taking a few more bites, she waited for when the spoon was in her mouth next and bit down, jerking her head back to yank it out of their grasp. She turned her head and spat it on the ground. 

“Let me go.” She had more energy now and frantically swung her body around, straining against the ties.. 

The person sighed and she could hear them packing up whatever food they brought with them. They stood, the chair screeching, she panicked. “W-wait.”

There was a pause where they probably watched her expectantly and she mulled over what to say before she opened her mouth.

“Rot in hell.” 

\-----

_“I have something of yours. I considered just ending it now and sending you her body in parts but that wouldn’t be fun, would it? It’s not part of the plan. But I was curious, your daughter really is something, isn’t she? Spent the last hour verbally assaulting my men but she sure is pretty to look at. What’s it going to take for me to give her back? What are you offering? The ball’s in your court now.”_

His Boss ended the recording before whipping the phone at Mark’s chest.

“You are a fucking idiotic, useless, pathetic black hole, do you hear me? How the _fuck_ do you just let her get taken by DS? The least you could’ve done was put up a fight. Why the hell am I paying for you to protect her when you’re out here leaving her on her own? I thought I could trust you, I thought you were actually good for something. But you’re nothing but a fucking waste of space.” He roared.

Mark set his jaw and kept his gaze averted. He couldn’t throw Jinyoung under the bus. “She has a daughter, sir. I’m not sure if you were aware. I was worried she would be targ—“

“Did I tell you to protect her daughter or _my_ daughter?” He hissed. 

Mark didn’t want to point out that technically Heiran’s daughter would be his granddaughter and instead kept silent. He was sure that telling him that he agreed with Heiran to prioritize Lucy of her would lead to more yelling.

“Now that smug prick wants something from us in exchange for her.” He mumbled. “You’re lucky I still need you or else I would’ve put a bullet through your head before you walked in."

Mark didn't flinch and just took the verbal beating. "Sorry, sir."

"Sorry. Sorry isn't going to bring her back, you fuck. You're the same worthless little _worm_ that I recruited. I thought maybe you've gotten better since you were a teenager but it looks like you're the same pathetic imbecile. Good for nothing dirtbag. I knew you were useless, I knew you'd end up disappointing me. That's why I have such low expectations for you. You walk around here like you own the place like you're next in line for Got7. You can't even do your job right and now we're being threatened with a ransom." He yelled before pulling his gun and pointing it at him. "I should just kill you."

Mark kept his face blank, “Why would he ever offer to give her back? He wanted to get revenge by killing her, so why isn’t he just doing it? Why taunt you?”

His Boss tucked his gun away and just paced back and forth, a rare display of frustration, “This is more than just revenge. DS is too smart to give up an opportunity for a takeover. This is a test.”

“A test?” Mark asked incredulously. 

He slammed his fist against his desk, “He’s letting us decide what to offer in exchange for her life. Whatever price we set, proves how important she is to us, to me. This means he’ll know just how much he can leverage her for and it’ll only be a matter of time before he’ll want us to trade Got7 for her life. That’s why he’s going to give her back now. He’s drawing this out.”

“So what will you offer?” Mark asked.

His Boss laughed wryly, “You know how he is, Mark. He’s greedy and ruthless, he won’t let anything stop him from getting more and taking more. Whatever I give him now won’t stop him from hurting her later.”

Mark’s eyes widened, “What are you saying? You don’t want to offer him anything?”

“No, I’m going to offer him something he doesn’t need.” His Boss tapped on his phone before a call rang out. 

“Took long enough, I almost thought you were going to leave her to us.” DS’s voice rang clear and playful and it immediately made the inside of Mark’s stomach shrivel.

“10 million.” His Boss barked.

A pause. A laugh. “10 million is a fraction of how much I owe in taxes.”

“You don’t pay taxes.”

“Which is why I don’t need 10 million.” DS said lightly. He could almost see him with his legs propped up, talking on the phone like it was a casual conversation between friends.

His Boss closed her eyes tight, holding back the anger, “20 milli—“

“You know what I want?” DS said brightly. 

“What?” He muttered through his teeth.

“I want Mark.”

Mark stiffened, his eyes darting to his Boss, trying to convey his complete opposition to this bargaining. He was good at his job, he could take on DS’s men, he could protect people from DS’s threats and he could predict the way DS would react but he did not want to face DS. 

He couldn’t do this.

“What do you want with him?” The Boss asked.

DS hummed, “Nothing. I’m going to send you an address where we’re holding your daughter and I want him to come get her.”

“That’s it?”

“That’s it.”

His Boss glowered at Mark who moved his head a fraction in an attempt to say no. Silence suspended over them as they battled it out. Mark knew that he’d have to surrender but that didn’t stop him from staring back defiantly. 

“ _No. Please.”_ He mouthed.

“What do you say, Mark? I know you’re in the room. Either you come for her or I’m sure she’ll be comfortable with us for a few more days. I hear she’s getting along well with my men.”

Mark took a sharp breath at DS’s taunt before stepping closer to his Boss. “Text me the address directly. I know you have my number.” 

\-----

Mark stood in front of DS’s headquarters, bitter.

Of course, he kept her here, right out in the open. He should’ve just raided the place, take a gun to anyone in his way until he found her. He wondered if she was hurt or if they put their hands on her, he'd have to teach them a lesson if they did. The psychological damage was far worse and inevitable. He wasn’t sure what he’d do in that case. He didn’t know how he was going to fix any of this even if he found her.

He could wreak havoc if she wanted but that wouldn’t help the trauma. She was going to always be a little bit broken after this.

And he knew that you don’t leave DS’s headquarters without at least a little bit of trauma on your shoulders.

He held his phone up and spoke briskly, “I’m here. Where is she?”

“Before that, come to my office. Let’s have a talk.”

Mark seethed, “No. That wasn’t the deal. Bring her to me or tell me where she is. Now.”

“Does it matter? I have what you want. So either you come up here, or I’ll hide her away somewhere the FBI won’t even find her.”

Mark felt his hands tremble in rage, “Still a manipulative monster, I see.”

“The door’s unlocked.”

\-----

Mark stood inside DS’s offices, trying not to gag at the gaudy decor. 

“You might as well mount a lion’s head over the fireplace. Really ties the whole dictator aesthetic together.” He sniped. 

DS smiled, tipping a glass of whiskey to his lips, “It’s been a while, huh?”

“Just say what you want and then take me to her.” Mark deadpanned. “You’re dragging this out, I should just kill you where you stand and find her myself.”

DS smiled, “Because that’s what your Boss makes you do, right? Just kill and kill and kill until you’re covered in blood and nothing else can satisfy you other than shedding more blood.”

“Is this an ethics lesson? Ironic coming from you.” He snarled. "Or are you psychoanalyzing me? I'm sure you're used to doing that."

DS’s smile fell, “Is working for him really worth it?”

“He hasn’t abandoned or betrayed me, yet. I’m valued at Got7. I'm not treated like an animal. People who work there are criminals, not sociopaths.” Mark said stiffly. He couldn’t give away more than he needed. “I don’t need much else.”

“You think he really trusts you?” He challenged. 

Mark could feel the rage building. “More than anyone else he works with. More than I’d ever trust you.”

“And that’s enough for you?” DS asked with a raised brow.

Mark wondered if DS was armed, it’d make it easier to kill him if he wasn’t, just one clean shot to the head. He'd probably drop like a sack of dimes, “Why are you doing this?”

“Come work for me.”

Mark didn’t miss a beat and just laughed in response, “Why would I want to sell my soul to the devil?”

“I wouldn’t hand you a gun and send you out to our enemies like a fucking guard dog. I wouldn’t go over your head and withhold information.” DS mused. “You’d be a leader here. I know what you’re capable of. I know you very well.”

Mark tilted his head, agitation licking at his heels, “I know you very well too. That’s why I’m shocked you’d think I would trust a word out of your mouth. I don't want to be the captain of a sinking ship. All you do is cheat and betray people to get ahead. A promise from you is worth less than a lie.”

“That may be, but I’m telling you the truth. I can offer you a better life than you have with Got7.”

He was incredulous, “I’m here for her, not to catch up with you and talk about our hopes and fucking dreams.”

“Are you scared that you could be happier here?” He asked.

Mark guffawed, “Do you honestly believe I’d ever be happy around you? Why do you act like I don’t hate you?”

“Because I don’t think you do.” He said cleanly. He was always so sure of himself. "I think you're angry and resentful but I don't think you hate me."

Mark shook his head in disbelief, "After everything, I can't believe you'd think I'd come work for you. That I'd willingly want to be around you or your operation."

"I can promise you that no matter what business we're into, we would _never_ get involved with human trafficking. I know having that guarantee is important to you, DS is everything that you'd ever want. This could be your home. With you, this empire would be untouchable."

He tensed, "Got7 isn't into trafficking either. It's a condition of my employment. The minute they start with that shit, I'm out. And this place could never be my home."

"Wow, they really don't tell you anything, do they? They treat you like you're second in command but they keep you in the dark just so you won't leave." DS said, his tone awestruck. 

Mark tensed, "What? Are you saying that Got7 is into trafficking without me knowing? How naive do you think I am? You'd lie through your teeth to get what you want."

"You can mass murder an entire town and you'd still be too good for this business, Mark. It's a shame you refuse to see that." 

Mark let out a dumbstruck breath, “Don't act like you know me. If you dropped dead in front of me, I wouldn’t feel an inch of sadness.”

“You trust him so much.” He stated like it was a fact.

Mark shook his head, “Why go through all this just to get back at us over this one mistake? We could've helped you get your man out of jail, we could've taken care of the cops. Why hurt her? Why terrorize her in her own home? Why threaten her and her daughter? Fuck, why are you even giving her back to us? I don’t get why you’re keeping her alive after spending months trying to kill her!”

DS’s face stiffened, his eyes glazing over as his brows knit together. He mulled something over before speaking, “Mark I don—“

“Did you hurt her?” Mark asked abruptly, staring at the obnoxious oil painting of DS that hung behind his desk. 

DS paused, his eyes darting to him, “Heiran?”

“Did you or your men touch her?” He asked lowly.

DS shook his head but it didn’t seem all that convincing, “I ordered them not to.”

“Do they listen to you?” Mark muttered. “Or are they torturing her while you twiddle your thumbs up here?”

DS stared at Mark in bewilderment, “Mark…who do you think she’s worth more to? You or her father?”

“Fuck this. Fuck your sick games.” Mark muttered before pulling his gun out from his belt and pointing it at DS’s head, cocked and ready. “I’m done playing. I’m here so tell me where she is.”

DS held his hands up and despite having one of the most dangerous men he knew holding a gun to his head, he didn’t seem scared. “You know she asked me to kill her in exchange for leaving her daughter alone?”

“Stop talking.” Mark hissed, inching forward so that the barrel was pressed against his forehead. “Where is she?”

DS stared at Mark from under his gun and smiled whimsically, a void of darkness in his eyes.

“In the Bunker.” 


	14. Fourteenth

The Bunker.

The entire walk down, Mark waited for someone to jump him or to turn a corner and find her bleeding out. He thought that everything was easier than expected, all he had to do was to be alone in a room with the man he hated more than life itself. Easy. 

But then, of course, DS said those words. 

The Bunker. 

He wondered if it looked the same. 

Mark walked by the most ostentatious paintings he’d ever seen as he walked lower and lower under the house, it was like willingly allowing yourself to sink in quicksand. With every floor he passed, it was harder to breathe. 

When he finally reached the lowest floor of the building, Mark spotted two of DS’s men standing by a metal door. When they saw him, they just smirked but made no move to approach him. Mark stood in front of the door, shifting his weight on each foot. It looked like a vault, fitting because only valuable things are kept beyond those doors. 

“You both can leave.” He finally said without looking back.

The men behind him cleared their throats, probably to hide their smiles. It must be vindicating to see one of the underground’s most dangerous men, who had killed and mutilated their own men, hesitate. 

“DS told us to stay.”

Piece of shit.

Mark pulled his gun out and rolled his shoulders back before pulling on the heavy door, dragging it back before standing by the doorway. It was a sensory overload. The plain white walls, like the inside of someone’s mind, perfect enough to drive you insane. The floor was just as white but there was a drain on the floor, no doubt for the people who were waterboarded. 

He could feel his own lungs filling with water.

There were chairs stacked up by the wall next to a table with boxes, an array of weapons and first aid kits. The air was specifically burning cold, to maximize discomfort. There was a small siren in the corner near the wall next to a surveillance camera. Despite the size, he knew the hell that siren could cause. 

It wasn’t a Bunker.

It was a torture chamber. 

Then he saw her. 

He never knew what it was like to have your vision tilt on its axis and your heart come out of your mouth like vomit, until that very moment. Like being hung from the ceiling by your feet.

Nothing would've prepared him for the visceral reaction to seeing her.

Heiran was bound to the chair and her eyes covered by a piece of black fabric that was cutting into her skin. Her shirt was torn open, hung sweat-drenched off her shoulders. Her lip was busted open, a bruise was purpling on her cheekbone and there was a trickle of dried blood on her neck. Her hair was messy, the result of being pulled, no doubt. She was slouched but straightened up when she heard him enter. 

She was gone for a few hours but managed to look like she had been held for weeks. 

“Duchess.” 

The reaction was instantaneous. 

She took a loud breath in before a loud whimper escaped her exhale. She sank into the chair, her head hanging limply as her shoulders shook with tears. He was glad that her eyes were covered because staring at these walls could turn you into someone you didn’t recognize.

And she couldn’t see how unevenly he walked towards her, his vision swimming as he entered the room. He was taking small steps and heavy breaths. He was nauseous, his chest swirling at the strong antiseptic smell, like bleach used to make blood smell clinical.

"Thank _god_." She rasped.

When he got closer, the damage on her face was clearer. 

DS was a joke. He told him men not to touch her? Fuck him. 

He dropped to knees, largely because he felt like he was in a trance and couldn’t stay standing for much longer. This room made him sick and his eyes sting but he was still relieved. Relieved that she was warm when he touched her and responsive when he spoke to her. 

“It’s me.” He mumbled, gently brushing his fingers against her knee in confirmation. She shuddered and leaned as forward as being tied up could let her until her forehead pressed against his. 

He stayed still but reached a shaky hand up to loosen her blindfold enough to tug it down to her neck. She kept her eyes squeezed shut until his fingers grazed her face. He was so careful with how he held her. She flinched on contact before sinking into his touch, exhausted. His other hand stroked down the side her neck and squeezed her arm reassuringly. If anyone tried to come for her now, they'd have to kill him first. 

He gently pushed her back, “Let me get your hands.”

It was silent as he walked around behind her and undid the rough rope. Her hands dropped down limply to her sides and she tilted her face up to stare at the ceiling. “They’re letting me go? Just like that?”

“For now.” Mark said quietly. 

He knelt by her feet and began undoing the rope binding her ankles, “What did he want in return?”

Mark didn’t speak, he couldn’t explain it to her, it wouldn’t make sense. Hell, it didn’t make sense to him either.

He was used to fighting for the death for a win, it made him uncomfortable that she was just given back. But then again, this wasn’t really considered a win. He expected an elaborate escape plan concocted with Jinyoung and the rest of GOT7 to track her down and break her out. He expected blood to drip down walls. 

In the world he was used to, he expected a guillotine to come down on his wrist just as he stretched his hand out to save her. 

He squeezed his eyes at the thought of the deep red of blood splattering against the white walls when a weak hand ran through his hair. He opened his eyes and looked up at Heiran who had tears in her eyes and pain in her soul when she touched him. She continued to comb through his hair, over and over, as if it brought her a sense of peace to do so. She looked like heartbreak.

Finishing the last of the rope, his eyes rushed to properly drink in her state. It was all so bad but the blouse, he couldn’t stop staring at the blouse ripped open. 

“One name.” He growled, it almost sounded like an animal. His hands were gentler when they cupped her cheeks, thumbing over her skin without putting pressure on her bruises. It was so warm and tender that it brought tears to her eyes. Just his touch and the sight of his face filled her with relief. She knew nothing bad would happen now. Not with him here.

She blinked, “What?”

“Give me one name. Which one did this to you?”

She realized that his eyes were brewing something darker but somehow it wasn’t as scary as not being about to see anything at all.

“I don’t know their names.” She breathed out.

He nodded, “Were there two of them?”

Two were standing outside.

“Yes.” 

He nodded again and tried to stand but she shot her hand out to hold onto him.

“What are you going to do?” She whispered.

He smiled gently and stroked his fingers through her hair. She had never seen him smile like that before.

“I’m going to take care of it.” He said calmly, he sat up, kissed her quickly on the forehead before standing. 

She was too scared to speak when he turned her chair to face away from the door. He took her hands and held them up to her ears, making her cover them. “I need you to start singing a lullaby and I need you to sing it loudly.”

Her eyes were wide, “Wh—“

“Twinkle twinkle little—“

“Star, how I wonder what you are…”

"Good girl." He mumbled with a nod when she continued singing and walked around her and to the door. She kept singing, her volume increasing but even as she sung about blazing suns, it wasn’t enough to stop her from hearing the two gunshots that echoed dully through the metal doors. 

Seconds passed before the door opened and Mark entered, jacket in his fist. “Can you stand?”

She tried but just as she was upright, her knees buckled and she fell against the chair again. It was overwhelming, being in this room, seeing where she was being kept. The pain slammed her hard and fast and having to pretend that the little drop of red on Mark’s shoes wasn’t blood was a challenge on its own. 

“It’s okay.” Mark said quietly. There was something about him that was edged with anxiety. He seemed like he was forcing his eyes to stay focused in one place and was tensing his body like he wanted to limit his presence in the room. To shrink. She knew right away that he didn't want to be in here any more than she did. 

He took the jacket in his hands and draped it over her so that it covered her torn shirt. “Do you want me to lift you or piggyback you?”

“I don’t care.” She whispered. 

He nodded and carefully lifted her in his arms, adjusting her so he had a comfortable grasp on her before moving to the door. 

“Close your eyes.” He instructed as he used his foot to open the door. She knew better than to question him now and shut them as he stepped out of the room. The minute he did, she could feel how the temperature changed proving to her just how cold the room she was in.

Her stomach curled when she heard a wet _squelch_ under Mark’s foot before the sound of him wiping it against the carpet. After a few more steps, he told her to open her eyes. She leaned her head against the crook of his neck, tired, pained and on the verge of passing out. With each flight of stairs he climbed, she wondered how she had remained unconscious when they first brought her down here. 

Maybe she was dreaming or maybe the fear had her imagining things but she swore she felt his lips brushing her forehead before he spoke, “I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t come sooner. I’m sorry you had to go through that. I’m sorry you had to be here when I did what I had to back there. I’m sorry you got hurt.” His voice sounded as pained and tortured as hers. 

“Why didn’t he kill me?” She rasped. 

Mark finally reached the main floor and wove through the halls towards the door, “Don’t think about that now. All that matters is that he didn’t and you’re going home.”

And he didn’t want to tell her that DS didn’t kill her because he was probably planning something worse, something bigger, something that didn’t just end with her dead. 

“You know what I thought about when you were gone?” Mark asked as he lingered at the threshold of DS’s headquarters. Somehow no one crossed their paths, perhaps they were instructed not to.

She looked at the line of his jaw. 

“That the artwork he used to decorate this place looks like shit and you’d do a better job.” 

Her eyes darted over his shoulder at the ornate red paintings. Her lips twitched but just as quickly, it fell and she leaned against his shoulder. He bit down his sigh and just brought her to his car and buckled her in. 

When he got in next to her, she rolled the window down immediately, a common move for someone feeling claustrophobic. “I keep waiting for someone to stop us and drag me back there.”

“No one will.” He said firmly. "I won't let them."

Her gaze was unfocused, “How long was I gone?”

“5 hours.”

“Felt like years.”

“I know.” He whispered.

She turned and looked at his profile, “What did he want in exchange?”

He let out a long, drawn-out, breath, “Me.”

Surprisingly, she didn’t hit him with a list of questions or demanded explanations. Instead she just asked, “Did you give it to him?”

“Yes and no.”

“Well…thank you.” She mumbled. 

He didn’t respond because the sound of gratitude felt bitter on his tongue. It wasn’t deserved. Being held in the Bunker with your senses dulled heavily fucked with you. The Heiran he knew would’ve cussed him out for letting her be taken in the first place. The fact that she was thanking him for something he caused in the first place was all a result of the fear that comes with being held hostage. 

It breaks you. 

It makes you a slave to the very thing that you hate. 

Suddenly your defiance gets replaced with devotion because you’d do whatever you could to not go back.

And hearing it from her? 

It was sickening.

\-----

“How is she?” 

Mark leaned back in the chair in his Boss’s office and just closed his eyes, his entire body ached, “She’s quiet. I got one of our people to check her out, no major physical damage. Most of it will be healed by the end of the week.”

“Physical damage? So, there’s mental damage?” He asked in shock. 

Mark opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling, remembering how he had to guide her into her own house and how she flinched when Jinyoung greeted her. Mental damage wasn't a question, there was _always_ going to be mental damage when you leave The Bunker. She demanded to keep her bedroom door open when he convinced her to go to sleep. 

And worst of all, she hadn’t asked about Lucy once. 

“Yeah, I think there is.”

His Boss shook his head, a fit of familiar anger bubbling, “I would’ve gunned you down by now if I didn’t need you. I cannot believe you let this happened and it's come to a point where DS had her in their headquarters. When I assigned you to her, it was to avoid things getting this bad. It was to avoid anything happening to her. How comfortable are you getting at this job that you let this happen? Now DS thinks he has the upper hand and he’s had her tortured just to send us a message that he isn't afraid of hurting her. Who knows what information he has on us.” 

Mark gaped at him, “Do you think she’d actually tell him anything? What would she have to tell him?”

“You don’t know what he’s capable of.” He hissed. 

Mark’s eyes widened and his hands trembled before they turned into fists, “I know better than anyone what he’s capable of. I'm the one that grew up with him.”

His Boss smiled and Mark’s eye twitched, “Oh, trust me, I’m aware of your past, but it’s been a while since you’ve been around him. He isn’t the same scrawny guppy you grew up with. You never screw up a job but you did this time, just proves that he still has some sort of an effect over you. But it’s no excuse for you to be fucking up where Heiran’s involved.”

Mark’s gaze dropped before he turned to the door, he couldn't take this anymore. It was one thing to hear his boss yell at him, it was another to hear him dismiss his past with DS and what he went through that easily, “I need to go and check on her.”

“Tell her I’ll be dropping by to see her myself.” 

He froze by the door, “I don’t think that’ll make her feel better, sir. She hasn’t forgiven you yet.” 

“Compared to you, I must seem like an angel in her eyes.” He said snidely. 

He bit down on his lip to hold back words he wanted to say and his Boss saw the anger brewing beneath his eyes. It pissed him off, “Are you going to disobey me? Remember how _you_ work for me, don’t be swayed by whatever faux relationship you think you have with her. Heiran isn't your boss, you don't listen to her. She has no idea what DS can do, don't let the time you spend with her make you forget that. She's just your assignment. Don't be weak.”

Mark let out a slow breath before nodding stiffly and walking out, slamming the door behind him.

\-----

“Where’s the kid?”

Mark asked when he walked into Heiran’s house. Jinyoung and Yeonhee stood by the door, watching him kick his shoes off. 

“In the basement watching TV, do you know she has an indoor theatre down there?” Jinyoung said. 

Mark nodded distractedly, “Does she know what happened to her mom?”

“No, we told her that she was feeling sick and resting.” Yeonhee grumbled, “She made me make soup for her mom. It was horrifying.” 

Jinyoung winced, “I went to give it to her but she’s completely out of it. I don’t know what the hell happened with DS but she’s like in a trance.”

“I guess it makes sense. Imagine being as clean-cut as she is and then getting kidnapped and beat up.” Yeonhee said. "Hard to bounce back from that."

Mark rubbed his forehead, “I need to see her but you should clear out soon, Boss is going to be coming by.”

“Woah.” Yeonhee said, eye-widening. 

Jinyoung looked just as surprised, “Do you think that’s a good idea?”

Mark snorted and walked up the stairs, “Doesn’t matter what I think, remember?”

He entered her bedroom and found her on her side, hands under her head as she stared out the window. The cold bowl of soup was on her bedside table and her bloodied and dirtied clothes were tossed on the ground.

He wondered if she played those 5 hours over and over again in her head. He had only been in there for a few minutes and it had repeated in his head constantly. He rounded the bed and sat on the edge, back towards her, and facing the window to see the same calming view she was. A silence was shared between them for a few minutes before he broke it.

"What happened to you in there?" He asked. 

She shifted and kept her gaze locked in front of her, "I don't want to talk about it."

"You should, trust me, there aren't a lot of people that will understand what you went through. I do." He pressed, "You need to talk about it out loud or else it'll eat you alive."

Her gaze immediately cut towards him, "You want to know what happened? I was drugged, then I wake up freezing and disoriented because I don't know where the _fuck_ I was or how long I was out for or what happened to me while I was passed out. Then I'm blindfolded so I can't see anything, I could've been on a fucking iceberg in the middle of the ocean and I wouldn't have known. Suddenly these voices, these men, start taunting me and harassing me and rip my shirt open. My mind was moving so fast I thought I was going to pass out because I wasn't sure if they'd try to do something awful to me. I spend the next 4 or 5 hours, I don't know, I lost all sense of time by then, being slapped, threatened, punched. I kept waiting for them to kill me or cut my fingers off or some shit. I just kept waiting to die, it almost seemed better than being tied up. Do you what that's like? Being alive after thinking to yourself _maybe death would be easier."_

She was panting and groaned, holding her head when her vision spun. "Then they fed me, which was another nightmare. I couldn't tell if it was kindness or to keep me alive or to drug me and move me somewhere even harder for you to find me. When I figured out that they were probably asking for a ransom, I didn't think my father would agree to the terms I didn't think you'd ever find me. Now that I'm safe and at home, the logical side of me is scolding me for being so shaken up when nothing _really_ bad happened to me but the other side of me keeps begging for all of this to be over and for everything to go back to normal."

“It’s going to be so hard.” He said quietly, he reached his arm back threaded his fingers through her hair. She sighed, closing her eyes at his touch as if it soothed her. As if _he_ soothed her. “Getting over what you went through will be hard and will take up a lot of your life. Normal might not ever be a part of your vocabulary anymore. So, take your time, sort out the pain, sort out the fear. Just because nothing truly horrible happened to you doesn't mean that you aren't allowed to be scarred from it. Take time off of work and just deal with what you went through. I’ll be here, all the time, so will some of the others. They won’t interact with you, only I will. I’ll look after the little skunk, just focus on getting better.” 

“Lucy.” She breathed out, eyes wide. She tried to sit up but he stopped her.

“She’s fine, we didn’t tell her anything.” He assured. 

She closed her eyes and dropped back on the bed and curled up. “I can’t do this.”

“She’s perceptive. She knows you’re not okay and she’ll know if you’re pretending. It’ll just make her feel worse. Knowing her, she'd rather prefer you taking the time to really get better than you faking it.” 

Maybe it was knowing tone in his voice, the tone of someone who wished he had heard similar words himself that made her eyes burn. She reached out and slowly slid her palm up his back soothingly. His muscles tensed under her touch before they slowly unwound. She methodically rubbed his back before closing her eyes. 

He hung his head low, staring at her hardwood floors as his body melted under her touch. He didn’t deserve to be comforted by her.

“Thank you.” She murmured.

“I was a few minutes late to running to your apartment when someone broke in and you yelled at me. I leave you on your own to get kidnapped and you’re thanking me.” He said in disbelief.

She huffed, “I know, it’s weird but this is a weird situation. But I thought I would never get out of there. I thought I was going to die or at least continuously wait as they beat me up until they finally put an end to me. So thank you for coming. Thank you for wearing that ring, keeping Lucy safe, even if it was at my expense.” 

He stared at his hands before pulling the ring off. He had slipped it back on after seeing her father, “I should give this back.”

“No. Keep it.” She said softly.

He froze, his hands trembling when she sniffled and groaned, “As of now you’re the only man in my life that hasn’t let me down. You might also be the first decent man who's worn that ring.”

“Yugyeom.”

“He’s basically my brother, doesn’t count.”

He still couldn’t take it, “If it wasn’t for me and GOT7 none of this would’ve happened. Fuck, do you know how scared I was?”

“I know.” She said quietly. 

He frowned, “Don’t say I haven’t let you down.”

“If you don’t want to, then leave it on my vanity.” She said plainly before rolling over and burrowing under the blankets. 

He sat there for a few more minutes, “Your father said he’s coming by to see you. I tried to tell him not to but I don’t really have much say when it comes to his decisions.”

She sighed before sitting up. She slowly pushed herself out of bed with his help and stood. He had a nervous hand on her back as she walked down the stairs and sat on the couch. “If he’s coming, I’m not letting him come to my room.”

His lips twitched, “Fair enough. I’ll be here in case it gets out of hand.”

“No, you can’t be here. You have to get Lucy out of the house before he gets here.” She said while carefully prodding at the bruised on her cheek. 

Mark’s brows knit, “Why?”

“I don’t want him to meet her and I definitely don’t want her to bond with him. If he tells her he’s her grandfather, I might commit a crime.” She growled. 

He bit down a smile when the familiar anger coated her words, “Okay, I’ll take her out.”

“Don’t feel bad for what happened to me. I always told you to prioritize her and I believe they would’ve taken Lucy to lure me out if we had let her go on that trip alone. And I’d rather be sent back to that room for another 10 hours than have her go through what I did.” She said quietly. 

He nodded before reaching out on instinct and slowly caressing the back of her head. She looked over at him, bewildered at the tenderness but his brows were screwed together, “It’s so bumpy, are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah, the person who gave me a check-up said I wasn’t concussed. He iced it and gave me painkillers. We’re sure he’s a real doctor though, right?” She asked. 

Mark smiled, his hand passing over the top of her head again, softness always seemed to come naturally when he touched her, “Yeah, don’t worry, He’s probably better than some of the top doctors in this country.” 

She nodded and let her eyes close at the rhythmic movement of his hand. He mulled over his thoughts before speaking quietly near her ear, “I’m sorry you had to hear my gun go off. I know that you’re aware of what happened when I walked out that door.”

“Just don’t talk about and I won’t think about it.” She sighed. 

He hummed before Lucy’s footsteps padded towards them. He pulled away, standing to see her staring at Heiran with concern, “Mommy?”

Heiran looked over at her, feeling choked up. The bruises on her face were hard to hide. “Hi sunshine, Mark is going to take you out today, okay? Won’t that be fun?”

Lucy ignored her and walked closer until she was kneeling on the couch next to her. Her small hands reached out to cup Heiran’s face, “Mommy are you okay?”

“I’m okay, Lucy. Don’t worry. Why don’t you take Mark to the fair? You really wanted to go but I don’t think I can take you this weekend.” Heiran cooed, pulling Lucy’s hands off of her to kiss her forehead. 

The concern was still in Lucy’s face but like any kid, the excitement of a fair distracted her, “Really?”

“Yup, only if you promise to bring me back some cotton candy.” She said, tapping her sweetly on the nose. 

Lucy nodded and raced up the stairs to change. Mark scowled at Heiran, “A fair? Are you kidding me?”

“Oh just drop it, Mark. Even _she_ knows that you like her being around. You don’t have to act like the kid repulses you, it doesn’t make you any less scary.” She hummed, reaching for her wallet and pulling out some bills to hand to him. 

He pushed her hand away and rolled his eyes, “You’re getting too comfortable with me.”

Heiran shrugged and put the money away before laying down on the couch, “I like the blue cotton candy.”

\-----

The fairgrounds weren’t as crowded since they had gone out on a weekday but it was still busy. 

Lucy finally got what she wanted when Mark let her squeeze her tiny hand into his. After Heiran, he was a little on edge and needed a more solid grip on Lucy. He shoved a corndog in her hand and just walked around lazily, her eyes darted around at all the coloured lights and bright music, trying to drink it all in at once. 

She managed to guilt him into a carousel ride that turned into 5 carousel rides before he had to physically lift her off the ceramic horse off to the petting zoo. If he had to hear that song play one more time, he was going to turn his gun on himself. 

For the most part, he wasn’t bothered with anything other than making sure he always had her in his sights and that she didn’t stray. But when she kept squealing and giggling whenever a deer or sheep would lick seeds out of her outstretched hand, he found his own lips quirking up. 

She was cute for a little gremlin. 

It was kind of starting to make sense to him why Heiran would toss logic and self-preservation out the window when it came to anything involving Lucy. Heiran was solely responsible for this kid, for her safety, for her wellbeing and hardest of all, for her happiness. 

He typically thrived under pressure but not _that_ kind of pressure. 

Imagine growing up resenting your parents and then having to raise your kid just praying that when they get older they don’t resent you for their issues. 

He couldn’t do it if it was him. 

But Heiran made it seem so simple. 

“Can we play one of the games?” Lucy asked, pointing to one of the booths they walked past. 

He snorted, “No way, kid. Those things are rigged so that it’s impossible to win. I’ll get you another corndog, though. Or what about a slushy?” 

Lucy fell silent and just held his hand as they walked across the pavement and wove through different vendor stalls. He glanced over at her and noticed her eyes following other kids who were holding stuffed animals and toys that were won by playing these games. 

He was sure that Heiran could buy out an entire toy store if that’s what Lucy wanted. Buying tacky stuffed bears that smelled like popcorn butter couldn’t possibly be _that_ important. He shrugged it off and made sure to buy cotton candy for Heiran before stopping by a crowd that had gathered. 

They watched a short magic show, Lucy finally smiling. She clapped and cheered until the show was over and the pair of them were back weaving through crowds. Every time he looked over at her, she would staring at some little sweaty kid with three toys tucked under their arms. 

Fed up, he found a water gun booth and dragged her over there, “I’m only doing this once.” 

Her eyes were wide as she held a melting popsicle in her hand and nodded. He sat her down on the seat next to him and paid the teenager who explained the rules. Shoot at the moving targets to fill the balloon with water until it pops. 

He gripped the gun and closed one eye until the bell rang and he pressed the trigger. It wasn’t like the guns he was used to but compared to everyone else who was struggling to aim, his balloon was already half-filled and by the time anyone else caught up, his balloon popped first and a little song played at his target lit up. 

Lucy cheered as Mark stood. He tugged on her little ponytail and nodded at the teenager, “Which toy?”

She took her sweet time deciding before picking a big dragon. It was so big that she had to hand him her popsicle, which he promptly began eating, and slugged the toy over her back. He followed her as she walked, a smile on his face as she stumbled with the massive toy weighing her down. He noticed the dragon’s tail dragging on the floor and gingerly picked it up, holding onto it while she walked proudly with a toy he won her. 

“Are you happy?” He asked. 

She looked at him the dragon’s head resting on top of hers, “I guess.”

His lips turned down, “Then why do you look sad?”

She opened her mouth to answer when another kid holding a toy walked by. She watched the kid until he blended with the crowd before looking at him. He frowned, “Did you want to pick a different toy?”

“No.” She said, holding the dragon, “I like this one.”

“So why do you keep looking at other kids?” He asked. 

She looked up him, confused, “I’m not looking at other kids. I’m looking at their parents. All those kids won toys because their parents won it for them. But you’re not my dad.”

He blinked, “Oh.”

She looked at her feet, “I’m confused because you do things for me that other dads do for their kids and you’re still wearing mom’s old boyfriend’s ring but you’re not her boyfriend and not my dad.”

“I’m sorry.” He said, “I can stop if you want.”

Her brows knit further, “I like it when you do those things. But I don’t like how you leave at night and don’t have breakfast with us.”

“I’m not your dad, Lucy. I’m never going to be your dad or your mom’s boyfriend. I’m just helping her.” He said firmly, “It’s not part of my job to spend the night or have meals with you two. Please don’t confuse me with a parent.”

She looked like she wanted to cry and he panicked. It wouldn’t look good if she started bawling in the middle of all these people. But still, he did feel bad for her and how his presence must of led her to categorize him as some sort of father figure. The only men in Heiran’s life before him were Yugyeom and her ex. That didn’t leave a lot for Lucy to compare him to. 

Kids liked straightforward relationships where they understood how people in their lives were related to them. He couldn’t give her that.

“You’re not my dad because you’re only spending time with me and mom because you’re paid to.” She muttered. 

He took a deep breath, “That’s right, kid. But you’re okay, I like being around you, makes my job easier.”

Lucy just looked away and for the first time, it was likes she and Mark were on the same page when she asked him, “Can we go home, now?”

But for some reason, it made him feel like shit.


	15. Fifteenth

Heiran was tapping her foot against the floor, ignoring the sting of pain sent to her ankles whenever she did. It was driving her insane, she just wanted her father to come and to get this entire conversation over with. 

She didn’t want to see him or hear him pretend to feel bad when this was all his fault in the first place.

If DS had asked for money or territory in exchange for her return, she wondered if her father would give it. It was probably easier for him to offer up Mark than to actually give something up something as precious. 

Minutes ticked by when the gate’s buzzer rang. She walked over to the front door, whimpered when sharp pain would sting her before peaking out. Seeing her father, she let out a quiet curse and opened the gates for him. Once he was parked, she opened the door and waited for him to be standing in front of her.

“Hi, pumpkin.” He said with a nervous smile.

She stared at the takeout in his hands and rolled her eyes before hobbling back into the house and to the couch. “Make it quick, I want to sleep.”

“I’m only here to check on you and make sure you’re doing alright. I needed to make sure with my own two eyes.” He said softly, setting the bags on the table and sitting down on the couch across from her. 

She closed her eyes and laughed, “A little too late to be wanting to make sure I’m doing okay, don't you think?”

He scanned the damage across her face, “DS will pay for what he and his men did to you.”

“Mark already took care of that.” She muttered, remembering the way darkness had consumed him when he told her to give him a name. It went against all her principles and she knew that if she told him to stop, to not hurt them, he would. 

But she didn’t because deep down she wanted him to punish those men, maybe not kill but certainly give them a taste of what they did to her. 

A moment passed and she almost wondered if her father had left until he spoke, “You and Mark are getting closer, aren’t you?”

“Don’t make this into something.” She sneered.

He raised his brows, “I’m not making it into anything, I’m just asking.”

“Mark is the first man who’s actually done something useful for me and you’re going to turn this into something bad, like I've done something wrong. What are you going to do? Replace him because you’re scared my magical vagina is brainwashing him?” She blurted. 

Her father made a face, “Jesus.”

“Don’t touch Mark.” She said quietly, “I know you probably hoped he would be bad at his job but he isn't. Don’t make him stop protecting me and Lucy, don’t punish him for me getting kidnapped and don’t hurt him because of me. He's the only person who's keeping me safe right now.”

“Lucy is a pretty name.”

Her eyes shot open and darted to him, “Don't say her name.”

“Can you at least tell me what she’s like?” He asked softly. 

She chewed on her lip before looking at the ceiling, “She’s smart. Smartest kid I’ve ever seen. Curious about everything and so caring and mature.”

“Do you think I could meet her? She’s my grandda—“

“No.” She growled. “Just because you’re my father doesn’t make you her grandfather. You haven’t been around for my life much less hers. I don’t want her to know you’re a criminal, I don't need that in her life. So fuck no, you're not going to get a 100 meters near her.”

He stared at his hands before looking at her, “It might be hard for you to believe, but I really care about you. I don’t always show it the right way but I care. When DS called me and told me he had you, I felt like I was drowning alive. I knew I was failing you all over again. I’m so sorry.”

“Whatever, it’s fine. Are we done now? I want to sleep.” She muttered. 

Her father chewed his lip nervously. “Are you on any meds? What were you prescribed?”

“Basic painkillers. I’m not taking a lot. Is that all?” She droned. 

He wanted to stay a little longer, “What about the painting? Did…did you hang it up somewhere?”

“It’s in the back of my closet.” She said.

He laughed, “Fucking Mark Tuan.”

“What do you mean?” She asked suspiciously.

He shook his head with a laugh, “Mark told me that you liked art so I tried to get you something and you ended up hating it.”

“Mark told you that?” She asked with a small smile.

Her father’s laugh grew, “Was he just lying to me?”

“No…” She said laughing at the thought of Mark trying to help her father get a present using the little he knew about her, “he was right. I _do_ love art but I love good art. What you got me wasn’t good.”

Her father snorted, “I just thought the more expensive the art, the nicer it was.”

Heiran’s smile dropped as looked away, “Doesn’t it kill you to live that way? To measure everything by its dollar value? I may have money now, but I don’t let it consume me that way you let it consume you. There are other reasons why things and people are valuable to me aside from their monetary value.”

“Your mother,” he started quietly, “was priceless. She was always better than me and deserved more than the life I could give her. I never had much to offer her. It scared me that she’d one day find me useless. So I ran before she could, no matter how much she showed me how much she loved me. I was more insecure than what her love could heal me with.”

“How cute.” She said blankly, “You could’ve run off without robbing her blind first. Do you ever think about how by taking all her money she didn't have anything left to pay for chemo? We forced her to take out loans to pay for the first few rounds but then she refused to pay and all we could do is sit there and watch her in pain until she died. You’re not getting my sympathy because you're the reason she's dead.”

Her father frowned, “I know I what I did was despicable and there’s no making up for what I did to your mother. I live every day with that reminder. But I will still always care about you, despite whether or not you want me to.”

She didn't respond right away so he kept talking, "You know, I always watched over you, even before you got hired at that company. I watched you work hard, carry a heavy weight on your shoulders trying to get into school and give yourself a future while also caring for Lucy. I was so proud of you and when you struggled I wished I could help you but I only knew it would do more harm than good."

"You ended up harming me anyway. I would've been nice to grow up with a father, to actually have a family for support, but I learned that you were never my family to start with. You were just the sperm donor for my mom." She snapped. 

He looked defeated and she wondered how much would be too much before he completely gave up, "You know I love you, right? No matter how much you hate me, if you ever needed anything from me, I would move mountains to give it to you."

She didn't need a man to say he'd move mountains. 

She'd rather a man who made no promises but could move an entire universe without her asking.

She'd rather a man like Mark.

Heiran let out a breath, “Do whatever you want, I won’t lose sleep over you.”

“What about Mark?” Her father challenged.

Her brow twitched, “What about him?”

“He’s killed people, he’s committed just as many crimes as I have, why do you always defend him? Would you lose sleep over him?” He asked. 

It reminded her so thoroughly of what DS had whispered to her. 

_'Who are you worth more to? Mark or your father?'_

Even now, she wasn't sure what DS had meant by that, but those words sent shivers down her spine.

She let out a trembling breath, “I don’t defend the things he’s done, a lot of it has made sick, but no matter how hard you try to make him out to be the same kind of person as you, he isn't. He actually cares and he can tell the difference between what he has to do for his job and who he is as a person.”

Her father shook his head and almost looked sympathetic towards her, "Pumpkin, in our life, there is no difference."

"He isn’t the heartless carnivore you think he is. He’s empathetic."

“No, he isn't. He _is_ a carnivore and the thing about animals like him is that when you look them in the eye, you think you see empathy, but all you’re really seeing is the emotion in your eyes reflected in his. You are empathic and kind, pumpkin, he isn’t.”

Heiran scanned her father with her eyes. She wondered if he was that detached from the world and the people around that he was unaware of who they were. To him, they were these emotionless animals that he had captured and trained, but people like Mark, Jinyoung, and Yeonhee had more to them than that. They were people with hopes and dreams. They were people who just wanted a shot in life.

She knew it. 

Because she had been that person who prayed for a chance as well.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t compare an adult man deciding to abandon his family to start a crime ring out of insecurity and greed to a child who joined a gang out of survival and has been locked into this life ever since.” She spat. 

Her father chuckled and it wasn’t the warm-hearted laugh from before, it was darker, “That is quite a story Mark has. One day he will tell you what he used to be like, the things he had to do in the name of 'survival'. I wonder if you’re able to be so understanding then.”

\-----

It was 3 hours. 

The longest she’d slept consecutively since she was back home. 

It was the same nightmare she’d been having for the last couple of days. 

One where she’d be tied up and locked away in that room but she’d be watching from outside her body. She’d see the men who were beating her, but Mark would never appear in these nightmares. It would never end with him finding her. It would always prolong into gruesome torture where she’d beg and cry but they’d yank her teeth out or cut off her finger until the only thing she’d taste was blood and the only thing she'd hear was her own screams. 

And when she barely had any life left in her, she’d feel a barrel of a gun pressed to the center of her forehead. Right as the trigger was pulled, she’d wake up in a sweat. 

Panting, Heiran pushed her hair off her sweat-drenched neck before rolling off her bed. She walked down to her kitchen and poured herself a glass of water. She let it cool her down before fiddling with her phone. Her thumb lingered over Mark’s name before deciding _screw it all_ and pressing on it.

He was the one that said he was the few people who could understand what she had gone through. 

And it was 4AM, so it wasn’t like he’d pick up anywa—

“It’s 4 fucking AM in the morning, duchess. If you’re not in danger or if your house is not on fire, you should hang up now.” He grumbled. 

She smiled, his voice raspy and warm, she could almost see him under his blankets on a thin mattress on the cold floor of his shitty temporary apartment. “Mark, how do you do it?”

The sound of his mattress squeaking and his sheets rustling, “Do what?”

She stared at the picture of her late mother propped up on the kitchen counter, “How do you go to sleep after seeing what you’ve seen?”

“I wait until I’m really tired and then I just close my eyes. Sometimes I count sheep. I think they teach you that in pre-school during nap time.” He muttered. 

She chewed on her lip and hung her head, “But what if you get nightmares?”

“Get in bed.” He said. 

Frowning, she straightened up, “Huh?”

“You’re not in bed right now, right? Go back to your room and get in bed.” He said.

She dragged herself up the stairs and walked into her room, “Don’t bark orders at me.”

“It feels nice, though. I could get used to bossing you around.” She could hear his smile as she crept under her covers.

She sighed as she rolled onto her side, “Now what?”

“You know Jinyoung can’t stop talking about you right? He’s a huge nerd but still, he’s typically pretty calm and cool, but he’s basically a whipped little puppy when it comes to you. I tried to see if he wanted your number to like set you two up, I kind of meant it jokingly but he got all serious and told me that you deserved a better man. He’s fucking insane.”

It took Heiran a full minute before realizing what he was doing. She smiled slightly and closed her eyes, humming in acknowledgment as she let him continue to talk mindlessly about his day and his run-ins with Jinyoung before she was out like a light. 

Mark talked for a few more minutes until he could hear her even breathing. Still, he kept the call running and fell asleep to the sound of her against his ear.

\-----

“Hey, sunshine, ready for school?” 

It had been less than a week and the pain was lessening but Heiran still struggled with sleeping. She couldn’t exactly call Mark every night to talk her to sleep, but at least she was able to get enough hours in that she could function a little when the sun came up. It also meant a lot of little naps throughout the day, made her feel like a baby. 

Lucy smiled brightly and nodded while staring up at Heiran expectantly. She smiled slightly and touched the ribbons tied into her hair, “This is very pretty, did you do it all by yourself?”

“Yeah!” She cheered excitedly. "I wanted to look extra nice today."

It was beyond her how her daughter could always look so bright and happy no matter the day. “Well, you look very beautiful. Do you need money for lunch?”

Lucy’s face twisted in slight confusion before nodding slowly. Heiran pulled out a few bills and tucked it safely in Lucy’s backpack before taking her hand and walking her to the door. She knelt down and smiled, “Have a good day, sweetie. Make sure to listen to your teachers and share with your friends, okay?”

Lucy’s face had completely fallen, her smile weak as she nodded, “Okay, mom.”

Heiran frowned, “Is everything okay at school?”

“Yeah.” Lucy muttered. 

Mark’s car pulled up to the driveway and Heiran gave her daughter one last concerned look before kissing her cheek, “Bye, sunshine.” 

Lucy waved and quickly ran off to Mark’s car and got in. She watched Mark hold up a hand at her before pulling out of the driveway and driving away. She spent the day sleeping off the remaining pain and trying to get a total of 8 hours without being woken up by a nightmare. 

It wasn’t really working but it was the effort that counted.

She woke up in the middle of the day and tried to get some chores done, avoiding her work email as best she could. The house was getting too quiet and it reminded her too much of when she’d be left alone in that room for hours before her captors would come back. Turning on the TV to fill the noise she moved purposely around her house while also trying to wrack her brain for a reason why Lucy would be so down this morning when her phone rang. 

She glanced at Yugyeom’s name before answering, “Hey, what’s up?”

“Hey, is it okay if I pick Lucy up from school today? I wanted to spend some time with her, maybe grab from ice cream or something. I can drop her off around 7 unless you have other plans?” Yugyeom asked. 

Heiran hummed, “Sure, I’ll tell Mark he doesn’t need to pick her up and let her teachers know. Why do you want to spend time with her up all of a sudden?”

“What do you mean, all of a sudden? I always spend time with her on today.” He said, confused.

She was about to reply when her phone buzzed again with an incoming call. Seeing her office, she quickly said her goodbyes to Yugyeom before answering the call. 

Heiran had been dreading this.

“Hello?”

“Ma’am?” Eun’s trembling voice was a clear enough sign of what was to come, “where _are_ you?”

Heiran sighed, “Home. I’m not feeling well. I thi—“

“You’re at home? At this crucial time?”

Heiran winced when Eun’s voice was replaced with one of the VP’s, the nasal tone made her guess it was the Legal VP. “I’m sorry, I didn’t choose to get sick.”

“Well you sound fine to me. Your department is a mess right now, you just disappeared without giving anyone a heads up and this is right off the tail of the audit and the mess of the Samsung-SmartLogic merger, which by the way, we’ve heard has been going terribly. I know you made a scene at our meeting and you think you’re God now, but even God needs to fucking come to work.”

Heiran turned and stared at the mirror that was mounted on the hallway wall. The bruise on her cheek had lightened in colour but the yellowish-brown rise still stood out. The cut on her lip still hurt and made her bottom lip swell. There was a small bump by her temple and another one on the back of her head, less visible but the most painful. On top of all of that, her body was still ringing from soreness and sleep hasn’t been coming easily to her. 

She’d barely been getting 4 hours a night and refused to close the door whenever she was in a room, whether it was her bedroom or shower, the door _had_ to be open. Anything else made her claustrophobic and took her back to the room where she was tied up and beat. She needed to keep at least one lamp turned on in her room otherwise she'd be reminded of when she was blindfolded. 

And this man, in his ugly Gucci tie and coked-up head, had the audacity to demand she still show up?

“Hello? Heiran? Are you listening to me?”

“Fuck you.” She said simply.

He sputtered, stuttering over his words, “E-Excuse me?”

“Fuck you. I said I’m sick, I don’t need to be coughing phlegm into the phone to be sick. I have enough sick days. I’m taking the next few days off, if it’s an emergency, Eun can contact me, otherwise, my team is equipped enough to handle their jobs without my presence.” She said coldly.

She closed her eyes and fisted her hands, “And if you ever fucking bully my assistant into calling me, I’ll make sure all those problems I found in your department land on the desk of the CEO. So, one last time, fuck you.” 

And she hung up.

She didn't know how long this emotional high was going to last, she had a few of them over the last week, one second she’d be on top of the world, humming and dancing, the next second she’d be curled up in a ball hiding under her covers. 

Either way, she was going to make the best of this feeling. She grabbed her keys and threw on a Hermes sweater and a warm coat before swinging her purse around her finger and heading to her car. 

Maybe she’d get her nails done.

\-----

She had gotten her nails done, a deep red, before she had walked around the mall, window shopping. 

But it had only taken a few seconds for her to realize that some of the women were giving her worried looks when they saw her face. She quickly ducked into a makeup store and patted some concealer over her bruises and already felt her mood beginning to dip. She tried to ignore the drop and managed to buy herself a pair of heels in a deep green but she couldn’t shake the way her stomach churned and her energy drained from her immediately. She was coming down hard. Cutting her trip short, she hurried back to the car and started driving back home. 

If she started crying in the middle of the mall, she wasn't sure what she going to do with herself. 

Her emotions were so volatile ever since she left DS’s capture. She couldn’t control them or figure out when they’d drop to her feet. She tossed her bags into the seat next to her and began driving back home. She wanted to purge these feelings out of her system, especially when they made her feel weak. 

Her phone had buzzed a few times and worrying it was Mark or Eun, she pulled to a red light and dug her phone out. She had avoided looking at it all day just to make herself feel a little more in control. She swiped at the notification before feeling her entire body cold. 

No, this had to be wrong. 

She checked the date and felt dread sink even lower into her body. 

It wasn’t wrong. 

How could she have let this happen?

It was beyond her that she hadn’t noticed sooner. In the last 9 years of her life, she had never forgotten about today's date. She’d have it marked down on every calendar she had, an alarm on her phone, and she would've started planning for it a week in advance. 

So her heart stopped when she checked her phone at 6:30 PM and saw 5 unread reminders for today’s date.

It was Lucy’s birthday. 

No wonder she looked so down when she sent her off to school this morning. She probably expected a birthday wish, a song, a cake, a present. Anything. 

“Fuck.” Heiran whispered as turned the car around to drive home while slamming her hands against the driving wheel. “Fuck. Fuck. FUCK!”

How could she have done this to Lucy?

She was so caught up in her own problems, her own trauma that she completely neglected Lucy on her special day. Heiran’s throat began to close up as tears welled in her eyes. Why was she such an awful mother? She had never been ready to be a mother but she always assumed that once she began raising Lucy that the maternal instincts would kick in, but what mother would do this?

It was embarrassing that she had spent the entire day doing her nails and going shopping without even telling her daughter ‘happy birthday.’ Could she be any more selfish? 

“You’re a bad mother.” She whispered to herself as she ran red lights on empty roads and definitely dented her bumper on a curb. 

She couldn’t do this anymore, she couldn’t be a mother if all she would do was fail at it. Lucy deserved a fighting chance. That poor child was going to have to deal with Heiran’s constant failures and let downs. Lucy was the sweetest little girl and Heiran was never going to be good enough for her. She was her little princess, she deserved to be treated like one, but all Heiran could do was think about herself.

Her hands tightened on the wheel as she pulled up to her street. She parked her car and ran up the stairs unlocking the door and kicking it shut. She had 15 minutes, maybe she could order a cake and put in an online shipment for a present. She could whip something up to not be a _total_ failure of a mother. All she had to—

Was someone washing dishes?

Bewildered, she crept into the kitchen to find Mark putting the last plate into the drying rack before looking at her, “Oh, hey, where did you go? Scared the shit out of me, I had to get Jinyoung to trace your phone to make sure nothing happened.”

“Sorry.” She muttered, “I was running errands.”

“A heads up would be appreciated next time.” He said grumpily, “Does your face still hurt?”

She shook her head distractedly, maybe she should try and bake a cake herself, “Not as much, look, I ne—“

“Mommy!”

Heiran spun to see Lucy racing towards her. No! She was supposed to have 12 more minutes. 

“Sunshine!” She held her arms out and lifted Lucy, spinning her around, “Happy 10th birthday, baby!”

Lucy’s face glowed as she smiled, giddy. She wrapped her arms around her, clinging to her neck, “Thanks!”

Heiran felt like shit when she felt Lucy smiling against her neck. She didn’t deserve her, she didn’t deserve this little girl who looked so happy to see her and made no mention of the lack of celebration or seemed the least bit upset that her mother clearly forgot earlier. No tantrum. No screaming. No tears. It would've been easier to deal with those.

“My sunshine’s getting so big, isn’t she? You’re officially the double digits. My baby is 10 years old. Oh my gosh, she’s practically an adult.”

Lucy giggled when Heiran peppered her cheeks with kisses before setting her down and cupping her face, “Why don’t you go get changed, sweet girl? And we can go out and celebrate.”

Lucy clapped her hands, cheering before racing off. The minute she was gone, her shoulders sagged and her handbag slipped out of her hands. She dropped down on the stool and held her head in her hands.

“I’m a horrible mother.” She whispers, “I’m a monster, I’m no good at this and she deserves so much better.”

Silence filled the room until the sound of glass gently hitting the table made her lift her head. Mark had set a wine glass down in front of her and held a bottle in his other hand. She pushed it away, “No, I can’t drink, I need to drive.”

“You can have one glass as long as you didn’t take your meds. You clearly need it and I’ll drive you guys wherever.” He said. 

She sighed and brought the glass closer to her so he could pour the alcohol in. She scrolled through her phone, randomly adding different gifts to her cart, “She’s going to get these all late, now. All because I was told wrapped up in myself that I didn’t think about her.”

“So?” Mark muttered while leaning against the kitchen island, “she’s a kid. She’ll be happy when she gets the gifts. She won’t care that they’re late. And be real, when that twerp is 16 she’s not going to remember when you bought her some toy. She’s going to remember moments, like you coming home to take her out.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” She mumbled.

“And you’re not an awful mother, you’re not a monster, you’re human, you forget things, you make mistakes and you don’t give your daughter enough credit.” He continued.

She peered up at him, “What do you mean?”

“You’re selfish if you think you are the only person that can love that much because she loves you twice as much and is clearly willing to not hear from you all morning just to spend a night with you.” He explained, “She didn’t say anything about you being gone, she was just excited for when you’d come home.”

Heiran rested her head against her hand, “Thanks.”

“No problem, duchess.” He said before turning away.

Suddenly she sat up, “Fuck I didn’t order a cake.”

“Yeah, I drove in when Yugyeom was dropping her off and he mentioned that you seemed confused on the phone and might’ve forgotten. I figured with everything going on, it might’ve slipped your mind so I picked one up for her.”

Heiran let out a stunned scoff, “What?”

He shrugged to exude nonchalance, “It’s not fancy. It’s a grocery store sheet cake and it's in the fridge. We can take it with us and cut it while we’re out.”

“Fuck, Mark, you’re going to make me cry.” She mumbled. 

He grinned, "I aim to please."

She pretended not to notice the ring still on his finger or the feeling it gave her. 

\-----

They had taken Lucy out to see a movie where she gorged herself with popcorn and then again to a fancy barbecue restaurant where Heiran had practically ordered the entire menu twice. 

“Do you think this is enough food or do we need more? Maybe a neighboring country wants some.” Mark deadpanned as he used tongs to flip the meat. 

Heiran gave him a dirty look while constantly smoothing Lucy’s hair with her palm. “Do you want more, sunshine?”

“No.” Lucy said with a little laugh, “I think there’s a lot.”

Mark’s lips twitched before dropping some of the cooked meat on her plate. Heiran chewed on her lip as she stared at the sizzling meat. He raised his brow, “What's wrong? Am I overcooking it?”

“No, no, I was just thinking…um, I took some time off of work. You know, just to kind of deal with everything, plus the bruising needs to heal.” She said.

He nodded slowly, “Good for you. Did they give you a hard time?”

“Yeah.” She muttered, “But they didn't have a choice but to say yes.”

He put some meat on her plate before picking up his chopsticks. He used his free hand to reach over and grip her chin. Haeun held her breath and even Lucy stopped eating to watch Mark tilt her face up to hit the light. “The colour’s going down, which is good. at least they didn’t crack the bone.”

"I'm wearing makeup." She said softly, staring into his eyes. 

He frowned, "It's that bad? If it doesn't get better, I'll call our guy again to look at you."

She nodded and he let go before they ate in comfortable silence. Heiran had a few pieces before she began poking at her food. Her father's words were ringing in her head no matter how much she hated it. She used her foot to nudge Mark’s calf, making him look over at her in confusion.

“Will you ever tell me about what you were like when you were younger?”

Mark stilled and just stared back at her, eyes flickering back and forth trying to suss out where exactly this line of questioning was coming from before answering. “We’re here to celebrate, let’s not bring down the mood by talking about my past.”

“Is it that rough?” She asked quietly. 

Mark looked at his plate with his brows knit, "Did you talk to Jinyoung?”

“He didn’t say much. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to touch a sore spot.” She said. 

He rolled his jaw and sighed, “No, it’s fine. It was bad. I was left on my own and I didn’t make good decisions. Got involved with bad people and did some shitty things to get them to accept me and then it's just been one thing after the other since then.”

She tilted her head and waited, he just laughed, “You’re not getting more out of me, duchess.”

Heiran took that answer and spent the rest of the evening sharing in simple small talk, asking Lucy about her day and cooking the meat. Afterward, Mark had brought out the cake and when other patrons realized that the birthday girl was young, everyone joined in singing and cheering when she blew out the candles.

It was nice and definitely memorable, most importantly, Lucy seemed to never stop smiling. But even when Lucy seemed incredibly happy, it would still weigh on Heiran that she had forgotten such an important day.

After Lucy’s eyes started to blink in heaviness and the night had ticked over to midnight, everyone had piled into Mark’s car and fell silent on the drive home, soft music wafting from the radio. Within the silence, Heiran felt the exhaustion, both emotional and physical, seep into her body.

She desperately wanted to climb in bed and pass out and was starting to feel annoyed at the thought of having to get out of the car, walk up her stairs, and wash her face. She wondered if Mark would judge her for asking him to just lock her in the car in the garage until morning. 

“How have you been doing lately?” Mark asked quietly, glancing at her. 

Heiran looked over her shoulder to see Lucy asleep before facing forward, “Okay, I think. I keep having nightmares but other than that, my face just aches.”

“You’re still not sleeping well?” He asked with a frown. 

She shook her head, “I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

“That’s probably why you forgot.” He said quietly, “It’s not your fault, you know. Doesn’t make you a bad parent and it doesn’t undo all the good you’ve done for her. Don’t blame yourself too much.”

Heiran wanted to appreciate his reassuring words, but she was tired and was maxed out of her emotional capacity. She just hummed and lazily looked over at Mark’s hand that was dropped casually over the shift stick, tapping to a simple rhythm and sleepily admired his fingers.

Even without the tattoos and rings they were pretty, slender and long. Delicate and capable. She knew what crimes those hands have committed but they were still nice to look at. The tattoos covered most of his skin and it was almost comical next to her completely blank skin. It was like a blank canvas next to extravagant art. 

She didn’t realize what Mark would think when she gently rested her hand over his to compare their skin. He jerked out of his thoughts, his eyes darting to their hands and then to her face but she was distracted to notice, her brows knitting together in focus. 

He was a little stunned that she wasn’t ripping her hand away in embarrassment, coming up with a lie as to why she was touching him. She just left her hand there. Like she wanted it to be there. He was thinking maybe she was still upset over missing Lucy’s birthday morning and this was a strange way of her thanking him for helping. 

With that in mind, he spread his fingers so that hers would slip between the gaps of his. It was her turn to widen her eyes in shock. She hadn’t realized her hand was touching his. She just wanted to compared her blank hand to his tattooed one, she hadn’t noticed that she had rested her hand on his in the process but what was more alarming was the way he let their fingers intertwine, her hand over his. 

Heiran looked up at him but he was staring out at the road and she slowly and carefully curled her fingers down, digging her nails into the stick. His fingers followed suit and curled over hers, almost protecting her hand, covering her knuckles with his own, with the letters G O T 7 glaring up at them. 

They were locked together.

Her breathing was shallow as she let the tumbling of her heart consume her and continued to stare at their hands before slowly dragging her thumb up and down the side of his pinky. After the day that she had, somehow this one moment managed to ground her. Not his comforting words or the things he had done for her. But his hand holding hers. Heiran's eyes began heavy and she just tilted her head back, not noticing the little girl leaning over to peer from behind Mark’s seat to see her mother holding hands with him. A small satisfied smiled lifted her lips before she sat back and closed her eyes. 

Best birthday ever.


	16. Sixteenth

The pain never fully went away for good.

Sometimes she thought it did, but it would always creep back in different forms. 

Heiran still found herself shooting up in the middle of the night from nightmares. Being left alone sent her down a spiral where loud noises and darkened rooms had her breathing come out in short panicked breaths. She became accustomed to cold sweats and erratic heart rhythms. 

But it was getting better, she didn’t cry as much in the shower. 

The bruising on her face had recovered and most of the other physical trauma had vanished, it was just what was in her head that was taking longer to heal. But she took it one day at a time, one step at a time. 

Mark had become increasingly supportive as she tried to figure her pain out, he was a pillar of support that she didn't expect him to be. He was there to listen during the few times she had felt comfortable to talk about what she was feeling, he ran errands for her when she was too anxious to leave the house and he stayed at the house until she fell asleep before driving to his apartment. He was constantly offering her his own advice and experiences and tried to talk her through some of her fear-based panic attacks. He never made her feel like a burden when she put her emotional stress on him, he was just always there whenever she'd find herself searching for help.

They had grown closer since then and she found herself turning to him before anyone else in her life.

Heiran considered as much when she watched as Lucy ran around in the backyard, playing by herself.

“I’ll be fine.” She muttered into the phone as she leaned against the glass sliding doors.

Mark grumbled, “Sorry if I’m a bit skeptical, I’d rather be there and see you with my own two eyes. You’re lucky I haven’t just moved into your place.” 

She smiled to herself, “What are you doing right now?”

“Driving to GOT7’s headquarters, I need to go and get yelled at again.” He said. 

She pursed her lips, “You’re still getting shit for this?”

“You got hurt. Kidnapped.” He said with a sigh, “I’m never _not_ going to get shit for it.”

Heiran frowned, her eyes following Lucy as she was blowing bubbles. “But it was DS’s fault, not yours.”

“Well, DS will get his punishment too.” 

She made a face, “I told my dad to lay off you.”

“Aww, you’re defending me now?” He teased. 

Heiran rolled her eyes and turned to get a glass of water, “My father brings out strange tendencies in me, I guess.”

“I appreciate it, duchess, but you don’t need to go fighting my fights for me. Especially against your dad. I’ll manage.” He said. 

“Why does he trust you so much? You can’t be more than a few years older than me. Yet he left you and only you to look after me. He called you his right-hand man.”

She could hear his smile but not how bitter it was, “What good is a right-hand man to someone who is left-handed?”

“Poetic. When will you just own up and say you can’t stand him?” She asked blankly. 

He snorted, “Is this your way of flirting? If I hate your dad, do I get hotter?”

“Fuck off.” She laughed.

She turned back to the door and felt her smile falter when she noticed the backyard was empty. Frowning, she stepped towards the glass, pressing her nose against it, “What the _fuck?”_

“What’s wrong?” Mark asked.

But she couldn’t hear him as her eyes darted around before she whispered nervously, “Lucy?”

“You don’t know where is she?” Mark asked.

“Lucy?” She called as she slid open the door. She stepped out and looked around before feeling her knees shake. “Lucy? Sunshine?!”

“Where is she?” Mark asked, his voice falling nothing short of tensed, “Heiran…”

She ran out in her bare feet, her eyes searching frantically around her backyard, “Mark, Mark, Mark. Mark.”

Running around the wall of her house to check the corner, but Lucy was nowhere to be found. The world spun as her eyes desperately scanned the entire expanse of her yard, hoping that her sunshine was hiding behind a bush just to jump out and surprise her with that wonderful smile and joyous laugh. 

No.

This is not happening to her, not now, not after all of this.

No.

It was like her entire life had fallen to her feet and her universe, her _soul_ was ripped away from her. Stolen. Threatened. Taken. 

There wasn’t a lot of things that she valued, but for her daughter, she’d give it all up in a second. The success, the money, the career, the connections, none of that meant shit if Lucy wasn’t there. She did everything for her daughter, without her, none of it mattered. She may as well be dead if she didn't have Lucy.

She could feel her heart in her ears and everything she said came out in agonized screams, “Where is _she_? Lucy?!”

“Are you sure she didn’t go back inside?” He asked, his voice clipped.

“No, no, no, no. This isn’t real. This isn’t happening. Where is she, Mark? Where did she go? No!” She yelled in sorrow, shaking to the point where even a single step was difficult. This had to be a nightmare, surely she'd wake up in a sweat and Lucy would be safe and sound. 

“Heiran.” Mark said firmly.

“My baby! That fucking _monster_ took her!” She screamed as she staggered around her backyard, “What am I going to do? I can’t lose her. Mark! I need to find her!”

“Listen to me, duchess.” He repeated. 

“Mark, she’s gone.” She rasped out, her heart was pounding in her chest, ears ringing faintly as her body began overheating. Tears filled her eyes as she fell to the ground, she winced when something hard pressed into her knee. She lifted her knee and saw Lucy’s bottle of bubbles. A flood of new tears took over, “Oh god, Mark. Someone took her. How am I going to live? How did I let this happen? I looked away for a _second_."

“No.” He growled. “There’s no way someone took her.” 

She let out a sob before screaming in torment, her head pounding so hard she felt like she could taste blood, “They took her!”

“Go upstairs.” He whispered, breathing heavy, “Go look at the camera footage. I’m coming over now.”

She stood but her knees buckled and she cowered with a whimper, “Mark.”

“I know, baobei, I know. But I need you to go upstairs.” He said coaxingly, his voice melting into the soothing tone he'd use whenever she started to lose it. 

She stood, her steps uneven as she walked through her house, disoriented and dizzy. This had to be fake, a nightmare, there was no way that her baby was taken from her. Not when she was standing _right there_. She couldn’t keep from the strangled sounds that escaped her as she forced herself up the stairs and to her office.

“Are you there?” He asked. 

She fell in her chair and her hands were shaking so hard that she barely logged into her computer, “I’m here.”

“Pull up the video footage and tell me what you see.” He ordered.

She opened the security camera footage and rolled it back a few minutes until Lucy was back on screen. Tears poured down her face as she watched Lucy blow bubbles and chase after him until her gaze moved to someone off screen. Heiran tried clicking through the other angles but none of them showed what Lucy was looking at. 

Her bottle of bubbles fell out of her hand before she walked towards whatever was off-screen. Heiran let out an anguished scream when a hand came out and grabbed her. “Someone took her. I can’t see who! Mark, who did this?! I’ll _kill_ them!”

“I’m here, I’m coming in.” 

She didn’t say anything and just stared at the screen, frozen on the shot where the hand came out at Lucy. She could hear the front door open and close with a lock before hurried footsteps stormed up the stairs before Mark appeared by her door, panting. She didn’t flinch, she just stared at the computer, tears streaming down her face as he rounded her desk and looked at the screen. He clicked back and watched the video play a few times before shutting his eyes. 

“I’m going to find her.” He said it simply, like if he said it, it would get done. 

She whimpered; her entire body cold and shaking as she leaned her head forward. He knelt down next to her and pulled her chair to him. He pressed his forehead against hers, “I’m going to find her, duchess, but I need you to call your friend, Yugyeom. You need the cops this time.”

“Won’t they hurt her if they know the cops are involved?” She asked, frightened.

He let out a breath, “We need the cops this time. She’s a kid, duchess.”

She nodded, “Okay, I’ll call him. Mark, please find her. Please.”

“I will. Stay home in case she comes back, tell me what Yugyeom is doing and I’m going to drive around to all her favourite places. If anyone calls you about her, you tell me or Yugyeom, okay?”

He touched her cheek gently as she nodded before standing and she quickly grabbed his arm, “Find her and bring me whoever took her. I’m begging you.”

He stared at her before giving her one last look before walking out to his car. He ran out and jumped in before peeling out into the streets. It wasn’t until he was gripping the steering wheel that he realized just how hard his hands were shaking. After _barely_ getting over Heiran’s kidnapping, it clicked that he was already back in the same position, driving recklessly to try to find a missing Seo. One far younger and far more vulnerable. 

He didn’t know what he was going to do if Lucy had to experience the same bruises and pain that Heiran experienced. Hell, he didn’t know what Heiran would do but he knew that he wouldn’t be able to do anything to stop her. 

Mark drove around the park that Heiran would take Lucy to, he drove by her school, the library, her favourite ice cream shop, and couldn’t find her anywhere. Glancing at his phone, he saw Heiran’s text, telling him that Yugyeom was getting an Amber Alert put out and was searching for her. 

But Lucy had barely been gone for 2 hours, there was no way Yugyeom would be able to get the entire police force out looking for her. So, it was probably going to be him and two other uniformed officers. And if DS was behind this, the police wouldn’t be of much help. But it was better to have the cops out there looking than none. 

The sun had long set and Mark had essentially scoured the entire city for the little with a bright smile and crooked pigtails. The image of the little girl, carrying a stuffed dragon toy that was two sizes too big for her, flashed in his mind. He pulled over sharply before stumbling out of his car, He barely got his feet on the ground before bending over and throwing up on the side of the road. Pressing his hands against the car, Mark caught his breath, his heart pounding in his chest to the point where each intake of air was painful. He grabbed a water bottle from his car and washed his mouth out before getting back inside and driving off. 

There was no way Heiran was okay right now but there was nothing he could to help her other than to find Lucy, but darkness was washing over the sky, and time was running out and he had no idea where she was. No ransom call, no angry call from her father, nothing. It was like Heiran being taken.

Mark glanced at his phone. When Heiran was taken, he had no _hint_ of where she’d been taken until DS called to taunt his Boss. If anyone knew where she was, it would be him. Maybe this entire plot was to get him to join DS. 

Reaching for his phone, Mark was ready to walk back into the lion’s den to find her when Jackson’s name flashed on the caller ID. Mark’s brow twitched, his lip hitched in annoyance as he answered the call, “What? Now’s a shitty fucking time, Jac—“

“I have her.”

Mark nearly rammed into a curb when he jerked his car to a stop, “What the fuck did you say?”

“Her daughter. Lucy, I think? I have her.”

Mark couldn’t even let the relief sink in and just let the rage take over as his body trembled, “Where are you?”

“Han River.”

\-----

He spotted Jackson's SUV parked by the river and spotted Jackson standing outside of it, staring at the water with a lit cigarette between his fingers. 

Mark almost nearly rear-ended Jackson’s car when he pulled his car up behind his. He flew out, slammed the door so hard that the car shook as he stormed towards his member. He pulled his gun out and cocked it before pointing it at him, “Where the _fuck_ is she?”

Jackson flicked his cigarette to the ground and stepped on it before turning. He blew out a stream of smoke before raising his brow, “In my car, so you should put the gun away before she sees.”

Mark turned and saw Lucy sitting in the passenger seat, staring at him. He quickly tucked his gun into his belt and felt something unwind in his chest before turning to him, “What the hell do you think you’re doing? She’s a fucking _child._ How could you do that to her? Did you hurt her? How did you even take her?”

“Slow down.” Jackson muttered, “I didn’t take her because I wanted to. I did you a favour.”

Mark stared at him in disbelief, “Are you totally fucked in the head? You kidnapped a child, you weren't doing me any favours.”

“She was an assignment.” Jackson said slowly, “Boss called a bunch of us in and asked us who wanted to do this, and I volunteered because I know the rest of those jackals would’ve scared her. They would’ve done whatever they were told, I knew I’d just take her and call you.”

Mark felt his heart drop, “Wait, wait, our Boss told you to kidnap her?”

“He said that DS made a threat against Lucy. He was worried that he’d try to kill her or something, so he wanted to make sure we got to her first.” Jackson explained.

Mark looked incredulous, “Why wouldn’t he have told me? My entire job is to protect her and her kid, if there was a threat, I should know so I can make sure nothing happens.”

“He doesn’t trust you, Mark. After what happened to his daughter, he doesn’t think you can actually protect her.” Jackson said quietly.

Mark stilled at that comment. He knew his Boss was mad but he didn’t think that it extended to the point where he was being left entirely out of the loop. In his entire time with GOT7, he was never left out, he was always the person who knew things before anyone else. It was clear now, that whatever bond of trust between him and his Boss was slowly starting to erode. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Mark felt his chest seize in panic, he had to earn that trust back, he knew it. 

But now, his mind was elsewhere.

“How could he do that to his daughter? Lucy’s mother. How did he think she was going to react to her daughter being taken from her own backyard? She’s a fucking _wreck_ right now.” Mark’s voice was escalating, the distress evident.

Jackson eyed him worriedly, “Mark…”

“Does he know that she asked DS to kill her to protect her daughter? That she was willing to give her life if it meant Lucy was safe?” He shouted.

Jackson narrowed his stare, “No, but he probably had an idea. That’s why he asked us to get involved before she did something reckless and got herself killed by DS for her daughter because he knew that you would let her do whatever she wanted. He knew that you’re not objective anymore. You’re not treating her like an assignment, you’re treating her like a person. Her emotions are getting in the way and you’re letting her act on them.”

“Watch it.” Mark growled.

Jackson shook his head, “Why? Why are you acting like this? I used to look up to you, you did your job like no one else in this line of business. You were like a machine, you went and got the job done. Nothing got in the way. But suddenly you spend a few months with this woman and her kid and suddenly you’re different. You’re changing even if you refuse to see it.”

“Shut the fuck up. You don’t know any—“

Jackson almost looked sad, “I know being around her and her life is probably really nice. Seeing her and her daughter, seeing a loving, normal, happy family and kind of feeling like you’re a part of it because you’re also around her, you’re taking her daughter to school or her piano lessons or whatever. Suddenly you start to think that maybe her family can be yours. That you can be a part of it. It’s an attractive picture, I get it. A pretty woman, a cute kid, a nice house. But you don’t get to have that life and also come home at 2 AM after you killed someone and wash the blood off in your shared bathroom. You don’t get to act like your normal while also committing crimes. That’s not real and it’s totally not fair to her because the minute you make yourself permanent in her life, you force her to give up the normalcy that you fell in love with. You force her to be complicit.”

Mark’s eyes widened at that. Jackson was a lot of things, but talking with actual logic and mature emotion was rarely one of those things, “Jackson…”

“Look, I’m not…I’m not trying to judge you. I know that you’re still pissed about that gala and honestly, that itself should be proof that you’re not acting like you would. You normally wouldn’t have gotten so hung up over me missing a shot and grazing her. You would’ve just told me to go practice my aim.”

“Jackson I can’t do this right now.”

“Okay, fine, but think about what I said because I’m not just making shit up and trying to Dr.Phil you. I’ve…I’ve been where you are before. Not an assignment but a regular woman I thought I could have that life with. And I was wrong. I don’t want you to be wrong too, because that shit hurts in a way you never, _ever_ recover from.” Jackson said softly. 

Mark hesitated at the look Jackson gave him before looking away, “Tell the Boss that Lucy jumped out of the car and that I found her. He won’t blame you that way.”

Jackson slipped his hands into his pockets and just watched as Mark opened his car door and say something quickly to Lucy before helping her out of his car and leading her back in his. Lucy held onto his pant leg before reaching up and forcing her hand into his grasp. Jackson turned away and stared at the beautiful reflection of the city’s lights on the water. 

He never bonded closely with any of his members, he liked everyone but he wasn’t particularly close. But Mark had always been someone he respected without even much interaction. 

So, he hoped that when this all came to a head, Mark wouldn’t come out of it more broken than he already was.

\-----

“What happened?” Mark asked as he looked over at Lucy. 

She was happily eating ice cream that he had purchased for her as he drove her back home. It gave him a chance to steady his shaky hands. She looked over at him, humming, “What do you mean?”

“How did you end up in that man’s car?” He asked.

She tilted her head, “He said he was your friend. I told him I have to ask mom but he said that we had to meet mom somewhere and when I looked at the door and she was gone so I thought it was okay.”

He closed his eyes, “Lucy, you are not allowed to just go off with random strangers. Your mom told you that.”

“But he said the password.”

Mark frowned and looked at her, “Strawberry?”

“Yeah!” 

He had no idea how Jackson had come to know that, but he just sighed, “Are you okay? Are you hurt at all?”

“Nope! He’s really funny.”

She was so happy, cheerful like she had no idea about the panic and heartbreak her disappearance had caused. Mark said nothing the rest of the drive and had texted Heiran, telling her that he had found her and to call off the search. He didn’t say much else and just focused on getting her home. His phone was buzzing with texts non-stop but he figured that nothing would make Heiran feel as calm as seeing Lucy in the flesh.

Once he pulled into her driveway, he saw Heiran sitting on the asphalt, blanket around her shoulders. She shot straight up on her feet, the blanket slipping off. Lucy hopped out of his car and raced to her mom who had her arms out. Her ice cream cone was crushed against Heiran’s shirt but she didn’t flinch, she just wrapped her entire body around the little girl, sobbing and sputtering frantically as she cooed and hushed a confused Lucy. Mark walked over slowly as Heiran pulled back, ice cream dripping off her shirt as she inspected her daughter for any injuries. 

“Oh, sunshine.” She cried, kissing her head, “Thank god, thank god, thank god you’re okay. I’m so sorry. You must've been so scared. Oh god, my baby. Sunshine. I was so worried.”

After making sure she was really there, safe and sound, Heiran held Lucy’s hand and brought back inside the house. Mark trailed tiredly behind and watched her walk Lucy up the stairs with a tight grip on her hand. He didn’t know why he didn’t just turn around and leave, he figured that she wanted to know what had happened. So, he just sat on the couch and closed his eyes, his entire body sagging before the sound of Heiran’s footsteps on the staircase woke him. 

He stood and moved around the couch to meet her halfway, “Heiran I—“

It was fast. 

He had barely gotten the sentence out when Heiran ran down the rest of the stairs, her body colliding against his and wrapped her arms around him. His breath died in his throat as she buried her face into his chest and hugged him tightly, her entire body pressed into his. Her grip was almost suffocating but after freezing and realizing that she was hugging him, his arms slipped around her shoulders. 

She shook in his hold and he pulled her tighter towards him, “She’s fine. She was never in danger.”

Heiran cried into his shirt, her nails digging into his back, hooking onto him. “You didn’t know that.”

“I did.” He mumbled, “It was Jackson.”

She reeled back, staring at him bewildered, “What the fu—“

“Your father ordered him to. Apparently, he caught wind of DS threatening your daugh—“

She moved back into his arms, breathing him in as she tucked her face into his neck, “I don’t care. I don’t give a shit anymore. Just—thank you.”

\-----

It wasn’t until she saw him on her couch, eyes closed and tired, that she realized that her relationship with Mark wasn’t normal. 

But there was no one in her life that she trusted more. 

Mark had become associated with a feeling of safety. No matter what happened to her, if Mark was involved, she knew things would be okay, no matter how scared she was. She relied on him and for a long time she tried to fight that feeling, she hated that feeling. That wasn’t who she was. 

But in times like this, times where there were things beyond her control, things she could never handle herself like kidnapping, she was grateful that of all men she had to rely on, Mark was the one she had. 

She stayed in his arms for what felt like years. Words weren’t enough to express how grateful for him she was. He swayed her gently and rested his chin on her head as she sunk against him. He felt like he was holding her up, like if he let go, she’d crumple to the ground.

“I’m going to murder my father.” She mumbled against his shoulder. “I’ll murder Jackson after. But I will ruin my father. He crossed a fucking line and he knew he was doing it. He knew I didn’t want him around my daughter and he tried to take her from me.”

His hands moved around her waist and squeezed her gently, “I know you will.” 

“I don’t care if he did it to protect her from DS. That’s not his responsibility, it’s mine. I want to wring his neck.” She scowled. 

He smoothed his palm over the back of her head, “I know, duchess.”

His voice cracked with exhaustion and it hit her how tired he must’ve been over the last few days. The constant bashing he received from her father on top of how he had been on high alert around her, he looked half-dead. 

She pulled away and scanned his eyes, feeling her heart crush at what was reflecting back at her. Heiran cupped his face and felt him rest the weight of his head against her hands, closing his eyes. “Stay the night.”

“Really?” He asked, opening his eyes, looking unsurely. 

She nodded, “It’s late and I still don’t feel good being alone in this house. Take the guest room, I—uh—I put some clothes in there that should fit you. Just—“

“Leave by morning, I know.” He said with a weak smile.

“No.” She said, shaking her head, “Just stay for breakfast, tomorrow.”

That was a first.

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea. I think it’ll just confuse Lucy.” He said.

She dug her fingers deeper into him, “No, just wake up early and come down. I’ll tell her that you just dropped by. Just…please don’t let me be the only adult in this house tonight.”

\-----

“Hey, Kim. Your friend’s kid, what happened there?”

Yugyeom looked over at the station’s chief and let out a sigh, “Good, thank god. Her personal assistant found her. I think she just ran away from home. Her mother lost her mind so I think her daughter won’t be leaving her sight. A huge relief.”

“Good. That’s good to hear. So, you’ve wrapped all your work up here?” 

Yugyeom pursed his lips and scanned his desk before nodding, “Yeah just about.”

“Okay, pack your shit up because organized crime needs you.” 

Yugyeom gaped at him, “OC? Why?”

“The new mayor is big on anti-gang violence. OC needs you to help with their new case. Something about feuding gangs and a threat of a full-on turf war.”

\-----

It had been a few weeks, she had started going back to work, although she spent most of the time working from home. Going to the office was overwhelming and even though there were days when she’d _have_ to go, she did her best avoiding as many people as she could. 

She didn’t need them asking about why she had taken so much time off. 

Plus she knew Yeonhee was beginning the process of blowing up the entire SmartLogic deal, she didn’t want to be pulled into it when everything started going to shit.

It had been a long day, dealing with back to back phone calls while dodging emails related to SmartLogic. Surprisingly, she found herself not as busy as she used to be. She wasn't being sent leads or potential investment opportunities that her team would normally forward to her. No new companies were reaching out to set up meetings, no one was in need of investment capital, no need to calculate costs and expenses of new investments. Nothing. The things that normally kept her busy and on her feet were nowhere to be found. It felt like she was doing a lot and nothing at the same time. But she appreciated the lull.

It gave her a chance to be on top of Lucy 24 hours a day. She made sure to pick Lucy up herself that day before letting Yugyeom babysit her. Lucy going missing had really upset him and he wanted to spend more time with her, each time she came back, she’d show Heiran another self-defense-stranger-danger move that he’d taught her. 

Heiran also had her own set of overbearing worries with Lucy, making sure she only went to and from school, never letting her out of her sight and going everywhere with her. Even though Lucy was upset, Heiran still canceled any extra lessons she took and minimized the time she spent outside of school and home. Whenever Yugyeom watched her, she demanded he send her hourly updates.

She’d even resorted to sleeping on the floor of Lucy’s room which both confused and excited the little girl. Mark kept his opinions about her parenting to himself but she knew by the look on his face that the one day he had come to pick her up and found her on the floor, he wanted to complain that she was being overreactive. 

She appreciated he chose not to say anything. 

It didn’t matter if she had to follow Lucy around for the rest of her life, she never wanted that to happen to her daughter again and she never wanted to feel that level of panic and loss either. The reality of how easy it’d be for someone to hurt her daughter was all the more vivid now. 

She’d been avoiding her father at all costs because of it. Heiran had only recently handled Lucy’s disappearance and her own kidnapping, she was sure that seeing her father would just set those angry, traumatic emotions off again. 

As much as she hated her father and want him to pay, she valued her own mental health more. 

It didn’t mean that she wouldn’t get her revenge on him one day. 

Heiran rolled her shoulders, working out the kinks from sitting hunched all day as she took a sip of wine and stretched her legs out on the coffee table, watching reality tv. She was three episodes in when she heard a slow knock on the door. 

Checking the cameras, Heiran spotted Mark before going down to open the door for him. She raised her eyebrows as she took him in, he was leaned against her doorframe, dressed in all black smiling at her in a way that looked more like a wince. 

“What’s going on? Is everything okay?”

He grinned, his eyes squeezing shut with a hiss before opening his eyes again, “That’s a really pretty shirt. You look good in it. But you look good in everything.” 

She gave him a bizarre look before glancing down at the silk blouse. She had it tucked into a pair of comfy leggings because she had video calls that morning, “Oh, thanks? Are you sure everything okay?”

“Oh yeah. Well, except for one thing…”

She was about to ask what it was when he pushed himself off her doorframe, revealing a streak of blood on the wood. 

“It seems I’ve been stabbed.”


	17. Seventeenth

“Oh my god! Oh my god! There’s so much blood. Oh god.” She said, frantic.

Heiran grabbed his arm and slung it over her shoulder before helping him into her house. She kicked the door shut and tried to carry him to the couch but halfway to their journey, she buckled under his weight and they both dropped to the floor. 

She gasped, pushing herself up when Mark let out a pained groan. She hovered over him, eyes wide, “Are you okay?! Please don’t die! Are you going to bleed out? Let me call an ambulance, we need to go to the hospital. How did this happen? Does it hurt? Did someone do this to you? Did you see their face? Should I call somebody? ”

“Heiran, I need you to take a deep breath and focus just for 15 minutes, okay?” He grumbled out.

She paused and blinked at him in awe, “You used my real name.”

He smiled weakly, “Is now the best time for this, baobei?”

“Fuck Mark, I don’t know what to do. Tell me what to do.”

“I need you to clean this. Just douse it in rubbing alcohol and wrap it in a bandage. It’s not deep enough to need stitches.” He said breathlessly.

She sat up, “O-oh okay, sit tight, I think I had some of that stuff.”

“I’m not going anywhere.” He garbled, closing his eyes.

“Don’t close your eyes!” She shrieked before running up the stairs, nearly slipping and banging her knee against the step.

She came back a few minutes later, supplies in hand, and dropped down next to him. She tore his shirt open and gaped at the wound. “Holy fuck.”

He winced, “That bad?”

“Uhhhh, no?” She knew it wasn’t a deep cut but there was a lot of blood.

He laughed weakly until she poured the alcohol over his wound, and he groaned in pain, “Warn a guy, fuck.”

“Sorry." She said meekly before dressing the wound.

Her eyes flitted over his lean form, glancing at the tattoos that covered every inch and the firm muscle that was hidden under it. “Okay, I think that should do it.”

“Do you have any painkillers?” He muttered.

She dropped the blood-soaked rags and scrambled to look through her things. “Yes! But they’re Lucy’s.”

“What?” He deadpanned. 

She held out a bottle of gummy tablets and he groaned again, except this time in disbelief, “Are you kidding me?”

“Sorry, I took mine to the office but these will do the job, they just taste like candy.”

He let his good hand take the bottle from her and flipped open the lid before dumping them in his mouth. She watched him worriedly, “I think you’re only supposed to take two.”

He glared at her from his spot on the floor, “Do I look like I’m the ages 6 to 12?”

“You don’t get to give me attitude when you show up at my house bleeding to death.” She snapped.

He rolled his head, “I’m not bleeding to death. I’m just bleeding.”

“You’re so annoying.” She grumbled. 

He touched his stomach with his hand, “Gotta keep you on your toes.”

She sat down next to him and smiled, “You scared me there. That was a lot of blood.”

“I’ll be alright.” He mutter, reaching his hand out to rest it against her waist, his fingers splayed against her. She just huffed as he rubbed his hand up and down her side. The heat seared through the fabric and pressed against her skin, “Your shirt is soft, fuck silk is killer on you.”

Her breath caught in her lungs and she felt mildly dizzy despite not being the one suffering blood loss. His touch was firm but not controlling or forceful, it was still gentle and nearly submissive against her body. 

When was the last time a man touched her like that? “You are _not_ loopy on children’s pain meds.”

He laughed before sighing, his hand still on her body. He blinked heavily before resting his eyes. “I like to pretend I am."

“Mark, why did you come here?” Heiran asked, chewing on her lip.

“I can’t go to a hos—“

“Then why didn’t you go to your headquarters? They probably have better resources than pills shaped like the Disney princesses.” She fired back.

He looked at her before squeezing her side, "Because you’re here.”

Her eyes widened, “Wh—“

“I figured if I was about to die, I’d want to see your pretty face before I go out instead of Jinyoung’s.” His fingers were about to slip under her blouse to stroke at her bare skin before she moved.

"You _just_ said that you weren't bleeding to death. Why the hell were you thinking about dying?" She barked. 

He just smiled, trying to reach for her again, "M'always thinking about dying. Want to see something pretty when I do."

She laid down on her back next to him, trying to pretend the weird shift in her gut from his words wasn’t real, “What happened? How did you get stabbed?”

“Had a bad meeting.” He muttered.

Heiran raised her brow, “I’ve also had a lot of bad meetings before, they rarely ended in stab wounds.”

“You and I are in different businesses, duchess.” He rumbled. 

She sighed and eyed him worriedly, “Did my dad do this to you?”

“For once, no. He didn’t.” He said with a smirk.

She tilted her head and he turned his neck to look at her. Seeing her curious look, he snorted, “You’re not my only assignment.”

“But I thought you were good at your job. How’d someone stab you?” She asked.

He laughed but then groaned at the pain, “The fact that the cut could be patched up but a woman who barely passed biolog—“

“You don’t need to rub that in my face. I went to an Ivy League college and got two degrees in business. Who cares about a dumb high school biology cl—“

“Yeah but 55%?” He gaped. 

“Why did I tell you that?” She groaned before reaching out and pinching at his ribs. 

He flinched with a chuckle but then hissed when he jerked his body too harshly. She pursed her lips and watched him cautiously, “Are you sure you’re okay? You really don’t need to go to the hospital?”

“I’m fine. My organs are untouched.” He said, readjusting his back. 

Heiran sighed and sat up, crawling to the couch and grabbing two cushions before coming back to his side. She used one to slide under his head and the other to put under his waist. 

“Thanks.” He muttered. He glanced down at his torso before sighing, “Was ripping my shirt open really necessary?” 

“Sorry.” She said with a laugh, she tried to pull his shirt together, “I guess I got carried away.”

He smiled, “Or you just want me shirtless. Just admit it.”

“Oh, yeah, I couldn’t help myself that while you were bleeding and just thought, _what the hell_ might as well see if he’s muscled up.” She said blankly. 

Her eyes trailed over his chest, watching his rise and fall with each breath. She followed the lines and curves of the ink etched onto his skin. Up close, she could properly see each of the images that were drawn on him and how even though they were all different, they somehow managed to be tied together.

“Why tattoos?” She asked, “Why is that your _thing_?”

He looked down at his body, his finger trailing the compass that was inked on his breast, “Gives me control, I guess. I get to decide what I do to my body.”

“Why do you need control?” She whispered. 

He blinked at the ceiling before looking at her, “Everyone wants control. Even you. It just makes us feel more in charge of our own destiny. A lot of my life I wasn’t in control, I was led, I followed. Tattoos give me control. Plus, they’re pretty good at hiding scars.”

At that comment, Heiran’s eyes focused on some of the uneven texture of his skin. There were scars scattered all over his torso. “Well, they look pretty.”

“Why, thank you, duchess.” He mused. “I bet you’d look good with a few.”

She chuckled, “Maybe someday.”

“When you do, you should let me do it.”

Her eyes widened as she turned to him, “You can tattoo?”

“I am a man of many talents.” He drawled. 

She chuckled, “Of course you are.”

Reaching out, she dragged her fingers around the bandage that was plastered near his hipbone and Mark shivered, a moan escaped him. A moan that didn’t come from pain.

She didn't need to know that his mind immediately jumped to the way her touch would feel if she slipped her fingers lower, past his belt. Those children's pills had to stronger than he thought.

Her throat dried as she looked up at him to watch his face. His eyes were closed but they slowly opened, lidded and glazed as he stared down at her.

That sound was going to haunt her.

“Will you stay the night?” She whispered. 

His lips parted as he watched her before nodded, “Yeah, I don’t think I can drive back.”

“Can I leave you on the ground?” She teased weakly. 

His laugh was croaky, “No, but don’t bother dragging me up the stairs, I can take the couch.” 

She raised her brow, “Are you sure?”

“Yeah, just help me get there.” He groaned as he tried to sit up. 

She took his arm and helped him up. He was better than before, able to carry more of his weight as she set him down on the couch. “You’ll be okay?”

“Don’t worry about me.” He muttered, eyes closed.

Her lips itched and she nodded before quickly cleaning up the floor and the drops of blood before coming downstairs with blankets and pillows. She tucked the pillow under his head and draped the blanket over him. Heiran was sat on the coffee table and watched him sleep, he looked so young and harmless. She ran her fingers gently through his silver hair and smiled to herself as he curled deeper into the couch. 

God, she didn’t know what to feel.

\-----

Mark woke up to the smell of coffee and the sound of pots and pans clanging in the kitchen. 

He winced at first and took a pause to remember everything that occurred the night before. He slipped a hand under the blanket and prodded at the wound by his hip. It still stung when he pressed down but enough of the pain had dulled down to the point where he could force himself up the stairs to brush his teeth and wash his face before coming back down.

Walking into the kitchen, Mark didn’t know what to do with his hands when Heiran set down a pot of coffee in front of an empty mug before setting a plate of bacon next to it. “You can eat before you go.”

He sat down and poured a cup before watching her, “Twice in a row?”

“You’re a patient. Special circumstances.” She said with a slight smile, “Feeling better?”

He nodded and took a bite of the bacon before resigning to the mug of coffee, “Better, for sure. Um…thanks for last night. I shouldn’t have shown up like that.”

“It’s alright.” She said before raising a brow, “I’m kinda flattered. Oh, and I saw your car out front, there’s a dent in the bumper. Wanna tell me what happened or should I just find a mechanic that doesn’t ask questions and help you hide the body?”

He snorted, “I clipped a curb looking for Lucy. Was being a bit reckless with the driving that day.”

“Oh.” She said, eyes wide, “Wow.”

His smirk fell when he glanced over the counter at the little framed picture he had seen before. "Is that your mom?"

Heiran followed his gaze before a soft look washed over her, "Yeah, that was before the chemo took most of her hair."

"You loved her?" He asked.

Heiran looked at him, she was going to laugh at how absurd the question was when she saw genuine curiosity in his eyes. Like the concept of motherly love was foreign to him. "Yes, I did. Very much. I learned everything from her. Everything about being a person and everything about being a mother."

"And she loved you?"

It was the same almost naive curiosity, "Yeah, I think she did."

"What's she like?" He asked.

She took a deep breath and mulled it over before speaking, "Kindness came so easily to her, she never had to try, it was second nature. Even after my dad ran away with her money, she just focused on raising us, on loving us. My mother came from a wealthy family, so she had a lot of money until my dad stole it. But even broke, she never took it out on us, we were never burned by her sadness. Everyone who knew her felt her love, was touched by her presence. She was...she was wonderful. A wonderful person, a wonderful mother, a wonderful wife. The world lost some of its goodness when she died."

Mark stared at the picture, her mother's warm smiling eyes. He didn't have a picture of his mother hung up, hell, he didn't _want_ a picture of her hung up. But Heiran's mother looked different than his memory of his own. Her mother looked like the ones on tv who loved their daughter, dotted on them and always put them first. The kind of mother you'd miss when she was gone. The kind you wish you got to spend more time with or say one last thing to or regret not saying I love you more. 

"That sounds...nice." He said honestly.

She smiled softly, "It was."

He pulled his faze away before finishing off his coffee and stood before, approaching her cautiously, “I should get back, shower, and deal with some stuff.”

“Sounds good.” She murmured. 

He shifted on his heels, unsure how to leave, “Lucy’ll be back soon?”

“Yugyeom’s dropping her off soon.” She replied. 

Mark nodded before staring at her, at her long hair pulled off her face and twisted in a neat bun. A pair of glasses perched on top of her head and a large sweater that his hands could easily slide under and touch bare skin like he had tried to do the night before. 

It was all so simple and inviting that he almost reached over and kissed her goodbye.

Fuck. 

“See you around, duchess."

\-----

It was barely a day since he showed up at Heiran’s door, bloody but Mark was already feeling better. He could move around his temporary apartment without feeling any major pain except for the anger that rose when he thought back to the cause of the wound. 

He hated being one-upped. For not moving fast enough.

Turning on the kettle, Mark waited for the water to boil when there was a knock on his door. He immediately stiffened, reaching for his gun. There were only a small handful of people who knew where he was staying. 

Moving to the door with light footsteps, he had his weapon ready before looking through the peephole. Stunned, Mark tucked his gun away and opened the door.

“What are you doing here?” 

Heiran held up the wine and a potted plant, “House warming.”

He let her in but his eyes were still wide, surprised, “Uh…”

“You asked me if I’d ever want to come for a tour of your place. Here I am.” She mused. 

A stunned laugh escaped his throat as she wandered around his kitchen to find glasses. Placing the pot by the window sill, she set down two coffee mugs and stabbed a knife into the cork to try and twist it out, “Mark, this place is a mess. Does the hot water even work?”

He was still reeling from seeing her in his space, even if it wasn’t his real place, “Um… yeah but the water pressure sucks.”

Her eyes scanned the room behind him and he followed her gaze before quickly picking up the clothes that were tossed on the couch. She bit down on her lip, hiding her laugh. This was part of the reason that she didn’t give him a heads up. All she wanted was to see him caught off guard. Embarrassed. Frantic. 

Because the Mark she normally sees was always put together and unshakeable. But the truth is that he’s a 29-year-old man just like any other who still has to do laundry and run errands, doing the regular mundane adult things that didn’t seem like something that a man like Mark needed to do. But he did. Because at the end of the day, he was just a regular person. 

“You look like a shy college boy.” She teased. 

He huffed but the tips of his ears are red. Her grin just grew wider, “Can I see your room?”

Mark rolled his eyes and swung the bedroom door open. She ran over and peek in, her eyes wide, “This is it? How are you living here?”

The room was small and barely fit the thin mattress that was on the floor. There was a table and a small closet, that was it. “Uncomfortably, trust me. I haven’t been in my real apartment in months, miss it like crazy. Jinyoung has a key and is feeding my fish but I get a notification every time the door is opened so I’m pretty sure he’s just moved in.”

“You have a fish?” She gaped as they moved away from his room and back to the kitchen. 

She poured the wine into the mugs and he took the glass that she offered. She leaned against the counter and propped her chin up against the palm of her hand. “Yeah, Nemo.”

Her smile was practically ripping its way off her face, “That’s so cute. I can’t believe you did something so cute.”

“Jesus.” Mark muttered, tipping his mug up to his lip to hide his smile.

She tilted her head as she scanned the layer of dust that covered everything, “Do you clean?”

“Call ahead next time so I can make this place less gross.” He grumbled. “Where’s the kid?”

She grinned and took a sip, “With Yugyeom. How’s the stab wound?”

“Fine.” He winced at the sharp tart taste of the wine before smacking his lips, “So, your daughter is being babysat, you have a free night and you decide to come here?”

She shrugged and dropped her coat on the counter before walking over to the couch before taking a seat, “That house gets lonely and you owed me a tour.”

He followed her over and sat next to her, propping his feet up on the chipped coffee table, “You’re a popular woman, there are other places you can go.” 

“But I want to be here.”

He turned to look at her, she was slouched against the couch, her head leaned back before taking another sip. At that moment, he felt like he _actually_ saw her. Not the side of her that ran her department in high heeled stilettos and expensive designer blouses. Not the supermom who balanced her kid’s safety, education, extracurricular schedule, and overall happiness. Not even the angered estranged daughter of a crime lord. 

He just saw someone tired. 

Tired of being put together, on the ball, and angry. 

He simply saw someone who just wanted to _be._ Someone who just wanted peace. Someone who desperately wanted to reach the point in her life where everything would just be smooth sailing. Where everything would finally fall into place and there was no more worrying or stressing.

And he related to the more than he was willing to admit. 

“Are we friends?” He didn’t know why he asked her that, he really shouldn’t have because he knew what her answer was and he knew better than to expect anything else.

Heiran sat up and picked up his remote before turning the television on. She flipped through a bunch of channels before stopping on the shopping network. She leaned back and took another sip of her drink, her eyes on the television before sighing. “You do such bad things.”

“I know.” He said plainly, “If it makes you feel better, I do bad things to bad people.” 

She thumbed her mug, considering that, “I wish I knew more about what brought you here.”

“Would that change the way you look at me?” He asked.

She shrugged, “Maybe, but I think context would help me make sense of what you do.”

“It won’t matter. My past isn’t an excuse for my decisions.” He said with a sip. 

She frowned into her mug, “I don’t think that’s true, anymore.”

He turned to look at her but she didn’t meet his eyes, “I used to think you are the decisions you make. That you need to be held accountable for that. But I think you’re a good person. I don’t think you let your violence consume you, you don't enjoy it. I think if you could redo it, you'd change some things. The more that I trust you, the more I’m beginning to understand that your relationship with my father and your job is really complicated. Kind of like mine.”

“What makes you think that?” He asked with a snort. 

Her lip shook but tears didn’t fall, “Sometimes, like, really deep down past all the anger, I want my dad back. I want a good relationship with him. I miss him because I still have happy memories with him. I imagine you wanting to stay in his good graces, to be loyal and useful to my father is based on the same things. You hate him sometimes, but you’d do whatever to make him happy because…he’s kind of like a father to you, isn’t he?”

Mark’s eyes widened at that statement. Was that what it was? After all these years, after being taken under his wing, and being shown an inch of kindness for the first time in his life, did he see his Boss as a father figure? “Fuck, I don’t know. Maybe. I never knew my dad well, I guess he _i_ _s_ the closest thing.”

His eyes were unfocused and maybe a little tipsy and she set her mug down and inched towards him, “I don’t think you’re cold-hearted. I don’t think you’re a murderer anymore. I think you’re just trying hard to make it another day.” 

“What does that make us?” He wondered. 

She pursed her lips, “I’m not sure, yet. I think you’re lonely and I think you don’t want anyone to take that feeling away because maybe that loneliness makes you feel safe. You like being on your own and that’s fine but if you can’t make room in your life for another friend, that means we’re nothing to each other.”

“Don’t you hate me for working with your father?” He asked. That’s what she made it seem like after all this time. That she couldn’t stand him because he was everything that she hated about her dad. He was no better than him. 

Heiran’s eyes felt heavy and she leaned her head against his shoulder, “No, I don’t think I hate you anymore. I think, when you’re ready, we could maybe be friends.”

“You’re just confused.” He mumbled, his grip tightened around his mug as she shifted to pressed up closer to him. She was so warm and comfortable next to him and it made his heart stumble and skip. But even with all those feelings, he refused to believe she actually knew what she was talking about. Or wanted what she claimed.

There’s no way she actually had sincere, healthy, positive feelings towards him that didn’t stem from trauma, “You only think after saving you and Lucy, the gratefulness you feel is the same as you liking me as a person. Trust me, you don’t and these feelings will wear off.” 

She sighed, “Maybe. Maybe I’m delusional, but let me ask you this. Do _you_ think you’re a bad person?” 

He fell silent and wondered how this tired tipsy woman was actually needling into his brain and accessing parts of him he’d rather not acknowledge. He knew who he was, the kind of work he did, and how he felt about it. Not that many other people knew. He never shared it. So, he was the only person who could judge his own character. 

“No. I don’t think I am.” He admitted. 

Maybe it was the wine that was making him honest. 

She closed her eyes, “Right, well, I don’t think you are either. I think if you had a choice, this wouldn’t be who you are. And I think if you really wanted to, you’d want to make a change.”

“People like me can’t just change their lives like th—“

“Shut up. I don’t want to hear this bullshit, anymore. If you want to change your life, you just have to do it. It’s not hard unless you don’t really want to leave it behind.” She said. 

He stared off at the screen, a woman was displaying a set of gaudy necklaces, yelling about a one time deal, “I’d leave one day, I know I will.”

“Isn’t it lonely?”

He looked over at her and found her blinking tiredly at the TV, “Isn’t it lonely just doing everything on your own? And dealing with your shit on your own? Even if you're content with your life as it is, don't you sometimes wish you didn't have to do it alone?”

“Are you asking me or telling me?” He asked. 

Her eyes were glassy, “It’s _so_ lonely.” 

He took a long breath and felt emotion claw up his lungs. Familiar desperation licked up his veins, “Do I make you feel less lonely?”

“Yeah.” She mumbled, “You make me strangely happy. Lucy adores you and no matter how hard you fight it, you love her back too.” 

He laughed roughly, “She’s a funny kid. Don’t know if I love her just yet, but she’s cute or whatever.”

She was right. Lucy always made him uncomfortable though, she was a defenseless young child in a world that was destined to try and hurt her. He was once someone’s 9-year-old child, he never got a fraction of the love Lucy received. He only saw people harm children, being around her gave him this perpetual sense of paranoia that someone would one day hurt her beyond repair. And someone so happy, so good, so loved didn't deserve to be hurt.

It's like what Heiran said about her mom, the world would lose some of its goodness if something happened to that little girl.

He understood Heiran’s obsession with protecting her. Having a child meant you were always worried about their safety. And the interactions he had with Lucy had created a bond between the two of them, no matter how much he pretended like it didn't.

“And you challenge me, you don’t shut me down when I argue with you, you fight back but you still show me respect. You encourage me to fight back. You may never admit it but you care about me, more than you need to.” She laughed, “You might be my first healthy relationship.”

He was speechless and just remained frozen.

Heiran looked at his hand and stared at the ring on it, “We hated each other at first, but now I’ve warmed up to you. I trust you. Who would've thought?”

He trusted her too. 

It was hard not to. 

He thought that all this time the sarcasm and grumpiness were doing a good job hiding any sort of accidental or intentional affection but she had seen right through him. If Heiran told him something, he'd believe her, he wouldn't even think about suspecting her. If she needed something, he'd do it for her. If she asked for help, he'd be there. No second thought. But that was who she was, she was honest and upfront. 

The truth terrified him.

It terrified him that he cared about her and Lucy more than his directive asked of him. It terrified him how he didn't have any other explanation when he went out of his way for the two of them, acting out of character for them.

It terrified him that there was something there with her. Something that he denied to Jackson, his father, Yeonhee, and anyone else who asked. There were feelings that were growing, feelings that brought out visceral reactions in him when either she or Lucy was in danger.

He felt something for her. 

Something he never allowed himself to dwell too much on. 

Looking over at her, he opened his mouth before finding her asleep, breathing evened out. He sighed and looked back at the television while finishing off his drink. This felt so nice, to have her curled up next to him, sleepy and flushed in front of the glow of the TV. 

Maybe Jackson was right. 

Maybe he wanted a life like this.

Hell, maybe if he had better parents, this _could’ve_ been his life. 

But if Jackson was right about this one thing then that meant he was right about _all_ of it. 

Mark couldn’t fantasize about being with Heiran and Lucy, living a normal happy life while also being a man who killed for a living. 

That wouldn’t be fair to them because his kind of life had already brought them so much pain. 

That’s why he was okay being lonely, planning for a life alone.

Of all things he’d be responsible for, hurting someone he cared about was never one of them.

\-----

“Sir.” 

DS looked up from his desk, his finger poised over the pen he was clicking. 

“We heard that the police have created a task force specifically to investigate organized crimes in Seoul. We’re thinking they’re looking into us and GOT7.”

DS tensed his jaw, his grasp tightening around his pen, “What tipped them off?”

“We think they caught wind of the tension and threats we’ve been swapping. I’m sure they’re getting ready for a potential world war if we end up going at GOT7 full force. Too many small-time gangs have been talking, I’m sure it slipped to the cops.” He explained. 

DS dropped the pen and massaged his temples, “Fuck. Fuck!”

“And we really can’t risk gunning for Heiran when the cops are sniffing around. If they connect GOT7 to her company, we’ll be dragged down with them.” 

DS chewed on his lip, sinking in his thoughts until he sat up, “Shit, what about her friend? That cop?”

“Yugyeom? Yeah, my guy said he was being transferred to join the case, if she ever comes clean to him, we’ll have the entire fucking police force knock down our doors.” 

DS leaned back, crossing his arms over his chest and stared up at the ceiling. “You’re right.”

“What should we do? Pull back on her?” 

DS fell silent, mulling over his options before sitting up with a slight smile, “No, we’re not pulling back.”

“Then what’s our move?”

He picked up a pen and began clicking, “We change the stakes.”


	18. Eighteenth

“Oh wow, it’s been a while since you were here. Nice to be graced with your presence.” Jinyoung mused when Mark stopped by his office. 

Mark dropped down on the chair in his office and stretched his legs out. It had been a few weeks since Lucy was taken and he was stabbed. Although only Heiran knew about the latter, “Yeah, had to run some stuff by one of the guys.”

“How’ve you been doing?” Jinyoung asked, pulling his glasses off. 

Mark blinked heavily at his friend, “Just tired. I’m basically working around the clock.”

“Yeah, you’ve been really busy since the kidnapping.” Jinyoung pointed out.

Mark raised his brow, “Did you hear about Jackson and the Boss’s directive?”

“Yeah, fuck. Thank god Jackson volunteered, I can't believe DS would make a direct threat to Lucy.” Jinyoung said while shaking his head. 

Mark steadied his gaze, “I wasn’t informed beforehand.” 

Jinyoung’s eyes widened, “Wait…you didn’t know she was being taken?”

“No! Why would I be okay with her being kidnapped? Why would I let Heiran think her kid’s been abducted?” Mark said in exasperation. “I have no clue why he’s freezing me out.”

Jinyoung ran his teeth against his lip, “Can I ask you something and can you give me an honest answer without getting defensive?”

“Fine.” He mumbled.

Jinyoung stared at his hands before looking up at him, “Do you have feelings for Heiran?”

Mark blinked slowly at his friend, “Why are you asking?” 

“I saw you when Heiran was taken. You were…you were distraught. And I know what you’re like when something unexpected happens during an assignment, you’ve never reacted like that. And Jackson told me that he was worried about you. That you seemed unhealthily invested in Heiran.” Jinyoung prodded gently. 

Mark narrowed his eyes, “I reacted intensely because _he_ took her. And Jackson grabbed Lucy without me or Heiran knowing. She thought her kid was in danger.” 

“Why did that affect you so much? You should’ve been relieved that Jackson had her but instead you got mad? You got mad because you were worried about the toll that it would’ve taken on Heiran even if Lucy wasn't in any danger. Doesn’t that seem out of character for you?” Jinyoung said. 

Was he really that transparent?

Mark closed his eyes and massaged his temple, “Look, it’s not…simple. I know how complicated my relationship with her is. That it’s not normal or easy. When it comes down to it, I know I care about her and her kid. And it's a feeling that I’ve never felt with anyone else. Like, all my mind can think about is her, how to keep them both safe, how to make her happy, and take some of her burden. But I’m worried the more time I spend with her, the more serious those feelings are going to get.”

“You think you could actually like her?” Jinyoung asked, “Knowing what you do for a living, your past, you think you’d let yourself?”

That was the question of a lifetime, wasn't it?

Mark hung his head, “Maybe not. But circumstances can change. I could change.” 

Jinyoung’s eyes widened, “Wait…what are you saying?”

“I’m not saying any—“

“You’d leave GOT7 for her?” Jinyoung asked, whispering.

Mark swallowed, “I didn’t say that. My mind isn’t even there. Right now, I just know that I care. And caring is different to love which is what I would need to feel to want to leave like that. And we know how badly I do in that area. Not to mention, I know she’d never feel anything that serious about me anyway. No matter what she says, she’d never actually want me in her life.”

He knew how dangerous it was to think in hypotheticals when it came to love. You can't get carried away in an imaginary future before the feeling itself manifested in anyone.

“But if everything somehow lined up…you’d leave for her?” Jinyoung pressed.

Mark fisted his hands to hide the tremble, “I don’t know.”

“That says more than you think.” Jinyoung mumbled. “Wow.”

Mark rubbed his face, “Shit changed with us after I brought her back from DS. For the first time, I’m actually…scared that something could happen to her. Something really fucking bad. And I'm not sure what I would do if it does.”

“And now you’re more protective of her and Lucy than you were when you first started this.” Jinyoung finished. 

Mark looked at his feet with a nod, “I don’t want DS hurting them.” 

He looked up and saw the sad look on Jinyoung’s face. “Fuck, I don’t know. I keep trying to ignore it but it’s like everyone sees it.” Everyone except him.

“For now, the most you can do is keep her safe from DS. Figure the rest of the shit out when her safety is more secure and Boss gets rid of DS or at least puts a stop to DS’s revenge warpath.”

Mark nodded before raising a brow, “You think he’ll actually try to wipe him out completely?” 

“What other choice does he have? There’s no way to ensure she’d be safe, especially now that they know who she is and it’s not like DS wants anything other than Heiran’s head on a platter.” Jinyoung reason. 

Well, there was one thing he wanted. 

Mark to work for him. 

“I guess you’re right. Well, I should go.” Mark grumbled while standing, “She has a meeting.”

Jinyoung smiled at his friend, “Thanks for coming by, and thanks…for answering me honestly.”

“It’s only because I like you.” Mark mused with a rare smile as he walked out of the office.

He closed the door behind him and stilled when Yeonhee stood across from him with a cold look in her eyes. His heart sunk when he realized that there was no way she was standing this close to Jinyoung’s door and didn’t hear any of what he just said. 

“Yeon—“

“Save it.” She muttered, knocking into his shoulder as she walked past him. “Don't say I never warned you.”

\-----

Boss looked at the picture he held, the one of his late wife before setting it back into the drawer. 

He missed her. He didn’t often allow himself to, but tonight he did. 

She was his moral compass, she was a light in a world of darkness but even she wasn’t enough to save him from himself. And even turn he took, he was straying further and further away. 

It was no question that she would’ve hated the man he was today. 

But it was pointless to mull over, he couldn’t change the path he was on now. He needed to protect what matters most to him. If he had to burn everything down around him, he would. Heiran was all he needed, all he cared about. 

He had to keep his eye on Mark, he had heard whispers that he was becoming a loose cannon and that people were noticing very visible changes in his behaviour. He didn’t know if it was because of DS or Heiran but it was making him uneasy. 

He sat down in his chair and stared out his window. His empire was under siege and he needed to be careful because the last thing he needed was a mutiny. 

\-----

“Okay but Tinder?” Yugyeom gawked.

He was seated in her office at the end of the day, staring at Heiran in shock as she checked her makeup in a small compact mirror. “What’s the problem?”

“I’m trying to wrap my head around the fact that my successful, rich friend is scoping for guys on Tinder. Don’t you have enough connections to find a hot, equally rich, and successful bachelor?” He asked. 

She rolled her eyes, “No, in fact, I’d hate that. I don’t want anyone I know in real life getting involved in my love life.”

“And you think Tinder will help your _love_ life.” He smirked. 

Her own grin indicated her naughty intentions, “Look, I’m not trying to find Mr. Right, I just realized that I need a break. I’m so caught up with work and other personal stressful stuff. Some shitty stuff has been going on especially with my dad, I just want to feel normal and do normal things like going on a date.”

“Your dad’s been contacting you?” Yugyeom didn’t know much about her father other than he left her mom and took her money. 

She gave him a sad smile, “It’s fine, really. I’ve just felt really…suffocated. I want to take control. Do something because I want to. I want to go on a date. I want to sleep with a stranger. So, I’m going to do it.”

It was true. Being kidnapped, having Lucy taken from her, having her father making decisions for her, she didn’t have control anymore. She felt helpless and submissive to the situation she was in. She hated it. And after talking to Mark, she realized that she wanted to change that. 

She wanted control. 

“Disgusting.” Yugyeom deadpanned, “You asked me to watch Lucy just so you can get laid? That’s so rude.” 

She snickered, “I’ve just been pent up. So what better way than to have an expensive dinner with a hot guy and then get bent over a bed.”

Yugyeom faked gagging as she laughed. She walked around to him and held out her phone, “Check him out.”

Yugyeom scrolled and clicked on a few pictures before raising his brows, “Okay, fair, he’s hot.”

She reached for her phone but he was tapping on something, “What are you doing?”

“Sending his profile to my phone so I can do a background check.” He said with an innocent smile.

Heiran didn’t bother arguing, “I’m bringing my assistant with me. He’ll just be waiting outside the restaurant.” 

“Good, but you can never be too safe. What does Mark think about it?” He asked.

Heiran smoothed her palms over the fitted white dress that ended above her knees and hugged over her body. Her hair was curled over her shoulders and her heels were the highest pair she could find. She wore a delicate necklace and her makeup was clean and flawless with a bold red lip.

She knew she looked good. 

But that still sent her in with nerves. 

“He doesn’t know. I told him it’s a business dinner with an investor.” She quipped. 

She couldn’t muster up the courage to tell him. Especially considering that this was her first date since her last relationship, she was out of practice. 

It was embarrassing, to say the least, made a tiny bit more vulnerable than she was used to and she couldn't deal with his jokes.

“So, what’s he going to think when you bring the guy home to ride him into the sunset?” Yugyeom asked. 

She pursed her lips, “He’s smart, he’ll figure out I lied once I flip my hair at the guy.”

"I hope you added _MILF_ to your profile bio." He quipped.

She gaped and snapped her head at him, instinctively flipping her middle finger at him.

Yugyeom was keeling over with laughter when there was a knock on the door. “Come in.”

Mark stepped in, his eyes immediately landing on Heiran. His footsteps slowed as he took her in. Her hair was no longer in the bun that she had put it in that morning. Her lipstick was fresh and brighter and there was something she added to her makeup that made it glitter and glow. 

And then he looked at her legs.

Fuck.

They were a mile high tucked into a pair of leather heels and disappeared under a tight white dress. Pretty. She was so fucking pretty it made his chest tighten. There was something that edged him when she stood in front of him all made up, not a single strand out of place. She looked perfect, airbrushed.

It made him want to mess her up so bad. 

To smear the lipstick down her chin, to rough her hair up through his fingers. 

She was a perfect picture he wanted to ruin. He bet she'd look pretty even then.

“You look good.” He said simply. 

Her lips quirked and Yugyeom raised his brows, “Thanks.”

“Ready to go? Your meeting is supposed to start soon.” He said, glancing at his watch.

She grabbed her jacket and purse before walking to the door with both of them. They made it to the parking garage he unlocked the door before Yugyeom stopped Mark, “Actually I have a question.”

Mark glanced at Heiran worriedly before nodding, “Yeah. Give me a second.”

Heiran got into the car and he turned to Yugyeom, “What’s up?”

“She isn’t going to a business dinner.” 

Mark blinked at him, “What do you mean?”

“She’s going on a date.” 

A stunned laughed escaped him, “What?” 

“She told me. She met the guy on Tinder. I’ll send you the profile.” He said quietly.

Mark was trying to keep up with all the new information, “Why didn’t she just say so?”

“Beats me. Maybe she’s just embarrassed. She hasn’t dated in years. I think the guy is just a regular dude-bro, but just keep an eye on her.”

Mark raised a brow, “Why? She’s going into a crowded restaurant.”

“Yeah, but men drug their dates or try to follow them home, you know, creepy guy shit.” Yugyeom said.

Mark took a breath, he was pretty sure Heiran could handle her own but he nodded nonetheless, “Noted. Thanks.”

A loud honk turned their attention to his car where Heiran’s hand on his wheel. “Let’s go. I’m going to be late.”

\-----

In the car he caught a waft of her perfume, it was different than what she normally wore. It was all vanilla and flowers and sensuality that clouded his head as he followed the GPS to an expensive Italian restaurant in the rich part of the city. 

“Is he here?” He asked while squinting into the restaurant. 

She checked her phone, “No, not yet. I’m just going to wait by the bar until he gets there.”

“Are you sure you don’t just want to wait with me until he gets here?” He asked. 

She shot him a look, “No, I’m not going to turn down an opportunity to drink.”

Mark shifted uncomfortably, “Alright. I’ll be out here. Let me know if you need me.”

She hummed with a devilish grin, “Trust me, I’ll be okay.”

\-----

He was pretty sure she was being stood up. 

It had been an hour since she entered the restaurant and her date wasn’t there. The bar was near the window so he could see her seated, knocking back gin and tonics like she was drinking water. She’d perk up every time the door opened but then when it was someone else, she’d slouch back down and order another drink. 

He leaned against the wheel and sighed. In the time that she was at the bar, he had downloaded the app, swiped through everyone in her area until he found her profile. It was a selfie from the shoulders up, she was smiling, head tilted.

It was a good picture. 

And some random guy saw it, swiped right, had an entire conversation, and set up a date with her. 

But then stood her up. 

He stood up a woman that looked like that. Unbelievable.

Mark looked back at the window where Heiran rested her cheek on her palm, rocking her ankle while tapping the toothpick in her drink. 

Before he could form a proper thought, he walked into the bar, ignored the hostess, and found Heiran. She lifted the glass and finished the drink before signaling the bartender for another. 

“Hey.” 

She flinched and looked over at him as he took a seat next to her. She narrowed her eyes while he made himself comfortable, “Yugyeom told you, didn’t he?”

He hummed, draping his arm behind her chair, “He didn’t show?”

“Hasn’t replied to my texts.” She muttered. “God, this is humiliating. I can’t believe I dressed up for this.” 

“His loss.” He muttered. 

She stared at him bleary as the bartender set down a glass. “One more for my friend.” 

“I’m not drinking, I have to drive.”

“We’ll get a cab. I’m not going to be sad _and_ drinking alone.” She grumbled before taking another sip. 

Mark just sighed and leaned back on his stool, watching her carefully. When a drink was placed in front of him, he downed it in one go to try to catch up. He called for another drink before looking back at her, “You look fucking good. If he bailed, that’s his fault.”

She groaned and held her head, “What was I thinking? Haven’t dated in years and my first step back into the game and I choose Tinder. What else did I expect?” 

“Why did you even agree to come on this date? You’ve never shown any interest in dating or hooking up.” He pointed out with a slow sip. 

She shrugged, “You were right. I want control. The last few months I’ve been hiding, looking over my shoulder, having my business deals commandeered by Yeonhee, been kidnapped, and had things kidnapped from me. I wanted to just do something, for once, on my own terms. I chose the guy, the restaurant, where this night was going to end. I was in charge.”

He paused, the drink poised at his lips. He understood the need to grip the reins when everything else was dominated by chaos. This date was her finding autonomy in anarchy. It was her navigating some normalcy back into her life. 

No more having the men around belittle her at work or the men in her family taking over her life or the men who targeted her forcing her into a constant state of fear.

And on top of it all, she was making herself do something she wasn’t used and that was out of her comfort zone but in a playing field where she was still the one calling the shots. 

She was resilient. 

"What was your ex like?" He asked abruptly. 

She shot him a dirty look, "Why on earth would I want to talk about my ex right after being stood up?"

"He's your last relationship, I'm curious. I mean, I'm wearing his ring." He said with a shrug. 

"Yeah... I guess you still are." She waved the bartender over, "Well, I need another drink if I'm going to talk about him." 

Mark smiled as she lifted her new drink. She leaned back against his outstretched arm and he gently stroked the open back of her dress with his palm. She finished the drink and brushed her hair back before clearing her throat. 

"My ex was a total ass. But before that, he was actually really perfect. He was sweet, funny, smart, hot as shit. We met during my Masters, he was a banker. We met at a bar, he was goofy and corny and won me over in a second. He was the first person I ever really loved. He was everything to me and he made me laugh until I cried. He was with me during the hardest moments of my life, especially with Lucy. We could talk for hours or sit in complete silence and still feel connected. Plus, the sex was great." She said with a laugh, "But most importantly, he felt like home. Like he was made for me. I don't know, I'm not really sappy but I was when it came to him. I loved him _so much_ and I know he loved me too." 

Mark's thumb stopped moving, "What happened?"

"I didn't think there was anyone else in the world for me but him. Naturally, I mentioned marriage. Not as something I wanted right away, but that he was someone that I could see myself spending the rest of my life with. I told him that after I finished school and found a good job, that it'd be nice if we got married. That I wanted that-- _him_ in my future." She said bitterly. 

Mark took a hearty gulp, hoping it could burn the feelings crawling up his stomach, "I'm guessing he didn't want the same?"

"At first he was super on board, almost _too_ on board, that should've been the first sign that he didn't really mean it and just panicked. After a few weeks, he broke up with me, said that he loved me but deep down, he knew he couldn't marry me; he thought if he gave it time, he'd be okay with the idea but I guess he never got there. He couldn't marry me with Lucy in the picture because he didn't think he could raise a child that wasn't his." She spat. 

Mark's eyes grew, "He wasn't Lucy's father?"

"No. He wasn't." She said blankly, "I raised Lucy while I was in school. It was hard, balancing classes and her, I nearly went into debt because of the daycares I had to put her in. Yugyeom would try to babysit her when he could but he was barely 23. My ex met Lucy early in our relationship. She was hard to keep a secret. He treated her so well. He loved her, fussed over her, and spoiled her. She had bonded so closely with him. That's why I thought about marriage because he was already treating her like his own daughter."

"Wait." Mark asked with a frown.

Heiran snorted, "Yup, he had no problem with her, dotted and adored her but then broke up with me because of her. Turns out that the thought of having to raise Lucy for the rest of his life freaked him out. I realized that the entire time we were dating, he probably saw Lucy like she was some kid he was babysitting; like she was temporary. So when he realized marriage meant he had to commit to raising her, prioritizing her, dedicating everything he did to her for the rest of her life? He ran like a little bitch."

"Fuck." He muttered. No wonder she always thought no one wanted a woman with a child. That was why she was so careful about the people that she exposed to Lucy. It would also explain why this was the first time she ever mentioned wanting to date, "He _is_ a little bitch."

She laughed, "I know, right? Like if he really loved me, loving Lucy shouldn't have been hard to do. I know most people don't imagine their future child not being biologically theirs, but you've seen Lucy. How could you _not_ want to live your entire life for her? I didn't really date after him, I had no time but also I didn't want Lucy to bond with someone who wasn't planning on staying and I didn't want to waste my own time on a man that didn't want the both of us. Cuz it was hard trying to mend my broken heart while Lucy kept asking when he was going to come back and play with her."

"Your ex is douche." He mumbled, "What a selfish prick. He led you on and didn't give a fuck if it hurt the kid. He basically had an entire loving family waiting for him to join them and he ran. Why would anyone run away from that? There are people who dream of a life like that. Doesn't matter whose kid it is, people want families."

She shrugged, "We have a good life, Lucy and I. I'm not greedy for more. But it shouldn't be this hard to go on one measly date with a guy I don't even really like." 

When a fresh drink was placed in front of him, he took another big gulp, “So what? Your ex was trash and your Tinder date was trash. You've only put yourself out there twice. Dating is a numbers game."

“I’m probably going to be single forever. No one my age is single and even fewer want a woman with a daughter.” She said waving him off.

He emptied out the drink and reached for the refill, starting to feel drunker with every passing second, “Fuck, I’d want you.” 

She turned to him, her leg swinging back and forth, before finishing her glass. She ignored the curl in her stomach, “Would you?”

Another drink, another sip.

“You’re attractive, duchess. The dress, the legs, the smile, it looks good on you.” He said, beyond buzzed, “Your kid isn’t a problem. Not really.”

“Really?” She blinked. "You'd like that?"

He tipped his drink down his throat, “You’re smart, you’re sexy as hell, what’s not to like? Lucy is cute. It’s not that hard to care for a kid that isn’t yours.”

Heiran chewed on her lip as her eyes trailed from the thick silverish hair and down the handsome curve of her features and to the tattoos that disappeared under his shirt. “Then what if we just went with it?”

He blinked heavily, the drinks were stronger than he thought and it was going straight to his head, “Huh?”

“What if we just slept together? Instead of this mess of dating random guys to see if any of them are remotely compatible, we could just be together. It’d be easier, I know you, trust you, and think you’re really good looking. It could work, right?” Her entire body was thrumming with a pleasant buzz. A drunken flush of _want_ ran through her as she stared at him. She remembered what he looked like shirtless. He was a really attractive man. 

“I think you’d be really good at it, and it’s been a while since I let myself feel good.” She whispered, eyes glassy. 

His breathing was shallowing out. What the fuck was she talking about?

And he wasn’t sure if it was the drinks or not but she was getting closer and closer to him that soon he was just surrounded by her heat and he was sure he’d _die_ if he didn’t get more.

He wondered if it was unseemly to pull her into his lap so that she could whisper in his ear, he wanted to touch her so badly. She looked so soft and pretty. His fingers twitched with the urge to reach for her. 

She was giving him serious whiplash, wasn’t she just saying that she would like to be friends one day?

“Is this a joke? Are you insane?” He asked, drunk. 

She faltered in doubt for a second but she must’ve caught the utter hopeless _want_ in his eyes because she didn’t back down she just inched closer, “What do you say? You and me? I think we’d be really good together.”

“You don’t know what you’re asking for.” He was practically panting into her mouth, craving how fucking good it would feel to just kiss her, like staring at water when you’re stranded on a desert.

He bet she’d taste good, that she’s sound good, that she’d feel so fucking good. That she’d ruin everyone for him that came after her. It was too much, he wanted too much. He was wound up.

Mark leaned his head against hers, he leaned close and she arched up towards him, anticipating the kiss but he just basked in her proximity, in the way her fingers finally touched him, trailing up his arm to dig into the fabric of his shirt. He wondered if she was someone who liked to rip clothes off of her partner, because he was but her dress made her look beautiful and she probably liked it, he wouldn’t want to ruin it.

He wanted her to just take what she needed from him, what she wanted. He just wanted her to find whatever she was looking for when she came here tonight. 

God, he was so drunk.

She peered up at him, “Come on, you did it with Yeonhee, you can do it with me.”

And in a second, the pressure building in his gut vanished, his eyes widened and he could smell her lovely mouth dripping in alcohol, just like his.

Because if he was sober, he’d know that she wasn’t like Yeonhee, it wouldn’t have been the same as his arrangement with her.

With the little semblance of logic and rationality throughout his boozy daze, he leaned back, only then realizing how indecent the two of them probably looked, “You are drunk.”

“You are hot.” She blurted.

He knew that he had to pull away, that he wasn’t going to kiss her or sleep with her. He just ran his fingers through her hair. It seemed like the best he could do, the only way he could show her any affection without actually doing anything. 

“This isn’t going to happen, duchess. You’d regret it if we did.” He said. He was drunk beyond belief and brushed his nose back and forth against hers as if they were a real couple and he was teasing his girlfriend while they were on a date.

She pouted, “You don’t know that."

“Maybe, but we probably shouldn’t have this conversation drunk.” He mumbled before taking the hand that was gripping his shirt and lacing it together with his.

“Let’s go home.” She sighed. 

He hummed in agreement, blinking quickly as if it would make him soberer. The alcohol was evaporating into sleepiness and it was like she immediately forgot that she had just propositioned him. She just tried desperately to balance on her heels and picked up her purse while Mark dropped bills on the counter. 

They both struggled to make it to the curb, leaning on each other to get balanced waiting until a cab rolled up. He helped her in and followed behind, slurring out her address before pulling her against him so she could rest on him. 

“What if we were sober?” She mumbled. “Would you say yes?”

He grazed his fingers against the curve of her hip, “Yeah, I might’ve.”

Satisfied, she closed her eyes until they were dropped off at her house. He used her keys to let them into the gate and the pair of them stumbled up the driveway. When she nearly snapped her ankles on her heels, he lifted her in his arms. He staggered into the house and kicked his shoes off before looking up at the stairs. There was no way he was making it up there with her without one of them cracking their skull open. 

He moved to the couch before dropped her on one end. He shucked his coat off and dropped back onto the other end. He barely heard her toss her heels off before the drunken sleep took over. 

It was 4AM or maybe even later when Heiran woke up. Her head spun and she groaned as she sat up. She shivered and looked across the long couch to where Mark was stretched out. 

“Mark.” She rasped out.

He didn’t move so she crawled across the couch towards him, “Mark? Mar? Ma--rk?”

He flinched and groaned, squinting up at her, “What?”

“M' cold.” She mumbled as she laid down next to him against the curve of his chest. He didn’t respond and just curled his arm around her and bring her tight to his chest so he could share his heat.

“Warm?” He mumbled.

She snuggled closer against his chest and sighed, “Warm.”

\-----

The next morning, Heiran woke up to a hammer against her head and a horrifying memory in her mind. 

Never a good way to start the day. 

_“What if we just slept together?”_

“No.” She groaned, clutching her head, “No. No. No.”

Thank god she was still dressed but _how_ was she supposed to face Mark now? She could barely remember what his response was but she could piece together that he hadn’t said much. Which meant that she was on her own with how much she was rambling nonsense the night before. Including how attractive she thought he was and how badly she wanted to sleep with him after the sting of being stood up. 

Oh god. 

“Oh my god.” She hissed. “Oh no. Heiran, you idiot.”

A hand tightened its grip around her waist and a face nuzzled into her neck, “Ssshh, freak out later, my head kills.”

She flinched and peered over her shoulder where Mark was watching her, eyes half-open, “Morning.”

“God.” She moaned, hoping the ground just opened and swallowed her whole. "I can't believe this."

He winced, his own head pounding. “I need a painkiller. I never get hungover.” 

She sat up, his hand slipping off of her, “Was yesterday just me constantly humiliating myself again and again?”

“Basically.” He snickered, rubbing his face and rolling the knots out of his muscles. 

She turned to look at him, eyes desperate, “Can we please forgot everything that happened last night?”

“Is that what you want, duchess?” He asked, voice raw and croaky as he looked up at her.

Heiran wiped at her smudged eyeliner and stood, adjusting her dress. “Right now, there’s nothing I want more."

Mark watched her climb up the stairs one step at a time and fall back against the couch once she was out of sight. For her sake, he'd be able to never bring it up ever again. He could pretend like it didn't happen; like they weren't a breath away from each other while she whispered filthy desires that involved him. Like she didn't tell him she wanted him in her bed and like he didn't imply that he wanted her in his life. He could act like if he hadn't said no, they'd be waking up in bed, naked and blissful. In fact, it was probably good for both of them that they wipe it clean from their memory. 

But for his sake, he wasn't sure if he'd ever want to forget last night. **** ****


	19. Nineteenth

Heiran chewed on her lip nervously as she scrolled through her emails. 

She was in her office at the company that day and she immediately felt something different in the air but she didn’t know what it was. People weren’t filtering in and out of her office nonstop or fighting to set up appointments like they normally did. Her phone was ringing but it wasn't from prospective clients or the accounting department but just the managers asking about little tasks that they normally wouldn't come to her with.

It was pretty obvious that all the time she spent working at home was programming her employees to become more self-sufficient. She couldn’t complain. 

But her inbox was still a mess. 

The emails from Samsung were getting increasingly more agitated and enraged because of Yeonhee was stonewalling them. If it didn’t make her so anxious, she’d find it a little hilarious who a single person could make major executives so exasperated. 

But the reality was that the clock was ticking on her career. She could feel Samsung’s patience running thin and it was only a matter of days until they snapped and called everything off. With how distracted she had been the last few weeks, she hasn’t been monitoring the situation or coming up with a plan. 

What on earth was going to say when people turned to her when everything fell apart? Ooops?

“Eun is basically falling asleep out there. Is it that slow today?” Mark asked as he walked in. 

Heiran’s cheeks immediately burned up when he sat down on the couch. That was the other thing distracting her. 

She couldn’t stop thinking about last night at the bar. It wasn’t the first time she got drunk but it was the first time she’d ever let alcohol make her loose-lipped. She couldn’t believe that she sat next to him and boldly asked him to have sex with her after she had gone on about how attractive he was.

And he turned her down. 

It was humiliating. 

“U-Uh…yeah, slow.” She mumbled, keeping her eyes fixed on her screen. 

Mark tilted his head back and watched her. He had thought about her a lot when he got home earlier this morning. He thought about her when he was in the shower and when he was getting dressed and when he was driving over. 

He couldn’t _not_ think about how pretty she looked, flushed and tipsy, telling him how much she wanted him. It was going to be something that played in his mind over and over again like one of his worst nightmares, he was sure. But he was also a man of his word. 

She wanted to act as if nothing happened, so he’d give her that.

“Did you eat yet?” He asked. 

She hummed non-committedly and he was sure she was doing it to avoid addressing him directly. 

He tried again, “Did you hear anything from the Samsung people, yet?”

“Yeah. This and that.” She breezed. 

He scoffed, “You’re the one that wanted to pretend last night didn’t happen. You’re doing a really shitty job at pretending.”

She winced and closed her eyes before dropping her head against her table, “God, I know.”

He wished she would just own up to it. To tell him that yeah, she wanted him. She could apologize for being forward if she wanted but he just wanted to hear her say it. He didn’t know what he’d do or say but he needed to hear once more. 

But he wasn’t going to get it.

He’d just take great pleasure in knowing that in the depths of her mind, she was attracted to him. It made him feel less alone in his feelings for her. 

“Look, let’s just put it on the table and talk about it. Then we can promise never to bring it up again.” He said. 

She peeked at him over her computer screen, unsure, “Okay…”

“So, you were stood up.” He was giving her an easy out, he knew it. 

Heiran sat up straighter, “Right, some man-child with a tiny dick stood me up. I got drunk, I was hurt and vulnerable because I was rejected. I was embarrassed and then you bummed me out by asking me about my ex. I went on that date with the intentions of having some sexy times—“

“Please never call it that again.” Mark interrupted. 

She glared, “Sexy times. So I was wound up and made some rather _forward_ comments that I now regret.”

“Hmmm.” He said thoughtfully. 

She scowled, “What?”

“I vivdly remember you calling me hot. I’d like to discuss that please.” He mused. 

She ran her tongue along her teeth, “I was clearly drunk beyond reason.”

He bit down on his lip to avoid laughing, “But you _clearly_ meant it anyways.”

“Okay fine, I find you mildly attractive in a very objective, you-have-a-symmetrical-face kind of way but we are technically work-colleagues with very different lives so it doesn’t really matter. Are we done?” She snapped. 

Mark tilted his head, “Do you remember what I said to you?”

Her face twisted in annoyance, “No, but I have a hazy memory of you _not_ sleeping with me despite how I practically climbed into your lap. So, I’d rather not relive being rejected _twice_ and just go on my day.”

That intrigued him. She had no memory of him saying that he’d want her, how he like Lucy, and would have no problem having her in his life too. And all the compliments, touches, and how he was a second away from kissing her; from signing his soul away to her.

If only she hadn’t implied wanting the same arrangement he had with Yeonhee, he probably would’ve kissed her too. 

No.

He didn’t need these thoughts. 

Not now.

At the end of the day, she was his boss’s daughter and his assignment. He had to chant that in his head, hell, he’d need to get it tattooed on his face at this rate. 

He couldn’t forget. 

Hopefully one day he'd get the chance to properly open up that part of his brain and unpack everything that Heiran made him feel.

“Are we good now? Can we agree never to bring this up and just go back to how things were?” She asked impatiently. 

Probably not. 

“You bet, duchess.” He purred. 

“Great, so do you have lunch plans?” She asked, straightening her back with a renewed confidence. It made him smile. She was back. 

He smirked, “My plans are typically your plans."

\-----

“I thought we were going to eat.” He deadpanned as he took the plastic bag from her while she helped Lucy out of his car. 

He didn’t bother commenting on how Heiran basically lied to Lucy’s teachers to pull her out of school. 

She hummed and led them down the rows of headstones in the cemetery, “I never made promises. You played yourself there.” 

He said nothing and just held his hand out when Lucy started grasping at the air with her other hand. The little girl seemed a bit more distressed than she normally was. “Is it your mom’s birthday?”

Heiran raised a brow at him and he shrugged, “I saw your calendar.”

“Hmm, perceptive. Yeah, it is.” She paused and turned to him, “Are you okay being here?”

His lips hitched, “I’m fine, duchess. Where is she?”

She stopped at a headstone covered by the shade of a nearby tree. “Say hello.”

He waited until Heiran set up a blanket and the proper offerings before sitting down next to her and Lucy. He stayed silent and just watched her faff around before settling in. She took off her blazer off and pulled her knees up to her chest. He looked over at Lucy who was laying on her stomach. 

He thought she’d launch into a long speech or thoughtful recount of her day but they all just sat in silence. It was then that he realized that Heiran probably spoke to her mother a lot in her head or at her photo when she as home. 

Heiran didn’t seem like the type to act differently on special occasions. She was who she was. Knowing her, she probably thought that it didn’t mean anything to only talk to her mother on her birthday. She probably believed that she should be talking to her all the time. 

“What’s your mom like?” She asked. 

His instinct was to snort, “Why?”

She shrugged, “I’m curious. You never talk about her.”

“She isn’t you.” He said plainly. 

She tilted her head, “What does that mean?”

“She’s not a good mother. Never was.” He deadpanned. 

There was a thoughtful pause before she hugged herself tighter, “I’m sorry. That sucks.”

“Yeah, I guess it does.” He murmured. His fingers itched to touch her, to skim his fingers down her spine or her arm. 

She gulped and he knew she was going to go for the big questions, “What did she do to you?”

He didn’t know where to begin. 

He wasn’t sure Heiran would take it well if she found you. It would probably scar her the way it scarred him. “She only cared about money, about getting more. Her and my dad. They cared about me a lot less.”

She knew that he didn’t answer her question but his words were enough to stab at her heart. Leaning against him, she sighed, “That _really_ sucks.”

He welcomed her weight like it helped outweigh the dark memories in his head. His fingers moved on their own, trailing up and down the inside of her arm. He couldn’t remember when touching her became so second-nature, “My mother wasn’t like you. She didn’t take me to extra-curricular or know what kind of after school snack I liked. She wouldn’t value my life over hers and she definitely wouldn’t have seemed so pained if something happened to me.”

She pulled his hand off of her and laced their fingers together. He stiffened for a second before letting her hold him, “You don’t know that.”

“I do. But it’s not just my mom. My dad was like that too.” He said. 

She sighed, “My father treated me like that.”

“Never treated me like that.” He teased.

She rolled her eyes and nudged him with her shoulder, “Don’t brag. They're still alive?”

"Yeah, but I like to pretend they're not. That way I don't have to think about them being out there somewhere walking around like they didn't ruin my life. It also prevents me from trying to track them down." He muttered. 

He wondered if she'd push him to find them. It was hard to explain why he didn't want to do that but instead, she sighed, "Yeah, that's a feeling I know."

“You asked me if I’m so loyal because I see your dad as kind of a father figure. I guess I do. He cared for me, he basically raised me and helped undo a fuck ton of trauma. He gave me an out. I know you might not consider what I do as an escape but compared to where I was, it’s a much better life.” He explained. 

She pursed her lips and stared at her mother’s headstone, “Yeah but you don’t have to stop there.”

“What do you mean?”

“You can keep searching for an even better life. One without the things that are giving you new traumas. You don’t need to settle just because the life you’re living now is better than the one you had before.” She said. 

Lucy stood and walked up to the headstone and just touched it, tracing the carvings with her fingers. Mark said nothing. He had considered leaving in search of something better before, that’s why he had the bar. It just never felt necessary to actually leave before. 

If he left, where would he go?

He’d be alone. 

“My father wasn’t loyal to me or my mother. I think it’s unfair that he gets to have someone like you be so infallibly loyal to him.” She murmured. 

His lips twitched at her comment. Maybe one day he’d tell her how he grew up, what his parents did, what he had to do, and the places he wanted to go. He hoped he could tell her and that she’d be as warm and understanding as she was now. He could only pray that she wouldn’t pity him too much or look at him like tainted, damaged goods. 

Somehow all of that sharing felt more intimate than the idea of having sex with her.

“Our parents don’t define us, you know.” She mumbled, “My mother, no matter how much I love her, doesn’t define me. God bless, neither does my father. Whatever your parents did to you you didn’t deserve and must hurt a lot but it doesn’t define you. Even if it put you in the position you’re in now.” 

When she spoke, she made his feelings about his past make sense, even if they usually didn’t. “It’s not so much about them defining who I am as it is them defining my future.”

“It’s the same thing, Mark.” She explained, “I had to learn that the hard way. I had to rewire my brain to understand that I am not someone who everyone leaves and abandons. I’ve built a bond with Lucy and my friends that proves that. They’re my future. If you think your parents define you, then of course, that will dictate your future because you’re going to make decisions based on that.”

He furrowed his brows, “You’re losing me.”

“Okay, what is it about your parents that hangs over your head?” She asked.

It was a question he never liked to answer and never let himself think about but when she asked it, the answer was simple, “That I’m worthless. That if my parents, who are supposed to love me unconditionally could throw me away, then everyone else will too.”

She tensed and he figured that she hadn’t expected that answer from him. He was pretty sure he was constantly throwing her off. “Well, if you keep thinking that, you’re never going to let yourself form relationships with people. Like real relationships. You’ll be alone in the future. You won’t have a family or friends, not because you’re unworthy but because you self-sabotage since _you_ think you’re unworthy. So you'd rather push people away than risk them abandoning you first. And that's how defining who you are now is the same as defining your future."

“Fucking hell.” He muttered.

She grinned, “6 years of therapy pays off.”

“6 years?” He gaped.

She shrugged, “I need to cope after death became a constant guest in my house. I had to take care of Lucy, I _needed_ to be in a healthy headspace if I was going to raise her.”

“Well, you’re right.” He admitted, “But sometimes even people like me need an inch of kindness from someone else to start believing that I’m worth it. To…rebuild what’s been broken.”

She nodded, “That’s fair. We all need support.”

Then he shared something with her that he never shared with anyone else. 

“I don’t want to be alone in the future.” 

She smiled to herself, “Then let me give you an inch.”

\-----

Heiran pursed her lips when she walked back into her office and found Eun away from her desk. That was until she checked her watch and realized how late it had gotten. 

She really needed to stop these long days. And the extended lunches.

It wasn’t going to save her from her problems. 

Mark had left to drop Lucy off at home and she needed to catch up on the work she blew off when she spent the rest of the day with them. But she was glad that she did, and she was glad that she took Mark with her because learning about the sides of him that he never talked about always had her looking at him in a different life. She understood him better and she didn't feel as different from him as she used to. 

Sighing, she pushed her office door open and walked to her desk when she noticed something placed right in the center of it. Something that wasn’t there when she had left that afternoon. Her breath caught and her heart fell to her stomach as she took unstable steps closer to get a better look. To make sure her eyes weren’t playing tricks on her.

A single pink rose.

Her hand was trembling as she reached out to pick it up, her finger immediately pressing into a thorn by accident. She held it up to her face and felt sick as memories rushed back like a vicious and unforgiving wave.

_\-----_

_“Excuse me?”_

_Heiran didn’t hear him at first over the thundering music blaring out of the club speakers. It was her first time out since classes had started and she tried to soothe her nerves by sticking with the group of girls who had invited her out._

_It wasn’t until a gentle hand tapped her on the shoulder that she turned to face the man that was calling her. She blinked, even in the dark she was taken by his striking beauty, “Yes?”_

_“Can I buy you a drink?” He spoke confidently like he didn’t think she’d no._

_It irked her._

_“I’m good.” She said, lifting the drink in her hand._

_He smiled slightly and suddenly he looked less confident and more gentle. He held his hand out from behind his back and it left her speechless as she stared at the pink rose. “At least take this with you and think of me.”_

_“H-How on earth did you find a rose in the middle of a club?” She gaped, taking it from him._

_He shrugged with a teasing grin, “I know a guy.”_

_That sold her._

_She spent the entire night with him, sitting by the bar and talking. She learned about his job, his hobbies, what he liked to do for fun and after exchanging names and numbers, she left the bar with her girlfriends feeling good even though she knew that it was just one night._

_He wasn’t going to call her._

_She wasn’t going to call him._

_They weren’t going to see each other ever again._

_\-----_

_“Babe! Stop.” She screamed with a laugh as he tackled her on the bed._

_His laugh echoed through the bedroom and soaked through her skin. It was deep, warm and a song that she’d never get tired of playing. He could seem so serious and bored to everyone else but with her, he was like a ball of sunshine._

_She was a fool to ever think they’d never see each other. He called exactly 2 days after the night at the club. And a harmless lunch date spun into a romance that knocked the breath out of her lungs and swept her off her feet and into his broad chest._

_He rolled over her, pressing his hands to her wrists and caged her against him. He leaned close so she could see the glint in his eyes and smirk on his lips. Man, she wanted to kiss it straight off his mouth, “What's wrong, Seo? Scared?”_

_She scoffed, “Me? Scared? You must be confused with another gorgeous, wonderful, stunning woman.”_

_He hummed with a soft smile before bending down to kiss her. She immediately arched into him, sighing into his mouth and moaning when he shifted his weight against her. There wasn’t a day that went by where she didn’t crave him._

_He always treated her like delicate glass, kissing her softly with love, and as much as she adored him for it, she was passionate. She was a fire. It took a second and she was licking into his mouth, kissing him like she had something to prove, before latching into his neck, her legs wrapping around his waist to drag him closer to her._

_“Where’s Lucy?” He panted, his voice pitching down a few octaves._

_She scraped her teeth along his neck, “Yugyeom took her out to the park.”_

_“Thank fuck.” He groaned before letting go of her wrists to slide his palms under her shirt and toss it off to the side._

\-----

_She ran back from her classes, her professor wanted to talk to her after the lecture and it ended up taking longer than expected and Yugyeom needed to leave for his own class. She had been trying to call him but she had no idea if he left Lucy alone or took her with him._

_Nearly breaking the door down, she burst into her apartment searching desperately for her baby, “Lucy?! Luc—“_

_The panic drained from her voice when she took in the sight in front of her. Warmth and yearning hit her straight in the chest._

_Her boyfriend was asleep on the couch with Lucy curled up on his chest fast asleep as well. She wasn’t sure if Yugyeom called him or if he just dropped by her place at the perfect time but in moments like this, moments where life overwhelmed her and she felt like a failing, inept mother, she was so grateful for this man._

_He was a blessing that the universe had given her as compensation for the hell it put her through._

_She knelt down next to him and smiled when she saw the messy little ponytail on Lucy’s head that he must’ve tied because he used the pretty hair ties that he bought for her. She always teased him at how bad he was at doing her hair but now it looked clumsy and perfect. Heiran slipped Lucy out of his arms and rested her against her collar before using her free hand to drag a blanket over his sleeping form._

_She kissed him on the forehead and crooned words of adoration against his ears._

_Love didn't even begin to explain how she felt._

_She wasn't experienced enough to find another word to describe it but all she knew was that this was the man she wanted to love for the rest of her life._

\-----

_“You look nervous. I’m worried.” She deadpanned._

_He snapped out of his thoughts and his face melted into an easy smile, “Just thinking.”_

_“Oh great, I’ll have the ambulance on standby.” She mused, walking to him._

_He slid his hands around her waist, pulling her to him so that he was on his lap. He sat on a stool and peered up at her, his eyes overflowing with emotion that always softened her to a weak little mush, “I love you, Seo.”_

_Her eyes widened. They had been dating for a while now but they hadn’t said the L-word to each other yet._

_Heiran’s heart tumbled and tripped on its way up her throat as she rested her forehead against his, “Is that what you were thinking about?”_

_“Mmm, wanted to do it more romantic.” He murmured. “But didn’t want to wait.”_

_Her smile near split up her face, “I love you too. So much.”_

_Grasping her chin, he pulled her face close to her and kissed her, sweetly but full of the burning fire that he always stoked in her. She bit down on his lip before passing her tongue over it to soothe the sting. He pulled away and smiled breathlessly at her, “I never thought I could feel this away about someone. Never thought I could feel so whole. Fuck, you’re something special, Seo.”_

_She preened, brushing her nose against his, “I know.”_

_He laughed before easing her off his lap, “Hang on, I got you something.”_

_She sat up expectantly as he opened the fridge and pulled out a single long-stemmed pink rose. Laughing, she took it from him and held it up to her nose._

_His palm smoothed down her back as she looked up at him, “I don't know what I’d do without you.”_

\-----

_“Get out.”_

_The air was frigid and she was glad that Lucy had slept through the entire blow up._

_His eyes were rimmed red but it had no impact on her. Why was he crying when he was the one breaking up with her?_

_“Seo…” He rasped out._

_She fumed, tears betraying her by spilling, “What? What the fuck more do you want to say to me? You don’t love me. You don’t want to be with me. The thought of marrying me is so fucking horrific that instead of trying to talk it out and have an adult conversation about it, you're just breaking up with me. Those are the highlights, right? What more do you want? What more do I have to hear?”_

_“I love you. I will always love you but this…this is just more complicated than I expected it to be. I thought I could be okay with it, I figured I just needed time to get used to the idea but marriage and fatherhood, I don't think it’s for me.” He said, his voice shaking._

_She scoffed, her fingers curling around the ring he had taken off, “Took long enough for you to figure it out. No, it’s not complicated. You’re just a dick who had his fun fucking me and playing house with my kid until you got bored.”_

_“Se—“_

_“What about Lucy?” She asked, “What am I supposed to tell her? That you left because you didn't want to take care of her? You left because of her and me? You’re so heartless.”_

_“Taking care of a child is a lot of work and we’re young. Keeping her safe and healt—“_

_“I know!” She screamed, “I know because I’ve been the one doing it all by myself all this time. For once I thought that I didn’t have to be alone in this but I was wrong. I was wrong about you. Fuck off. I can’t believe you’re doing this. All these years I thought we were happy. I thought were in love.”_

_“Please.” He whispered. "You know that we were."_

_“But I was the idiot who thought we had a future.” She rasped out._

_He held his head in his hands, “I’m sorry."_

_She was shaking, the heartbreak turning into fury, “I wish I never met you. I wish I never loved you. You are the worst thing to ever happen to me and Lucy. I hope I never see you again.”_

_\-----_

Her trip down memory lane was cut short when someone cleared their throat behind her and she jumped with a gasp before turning. She hadn’t realized she wasn't alone.

“Hi Seo.”

Her blood turned to ice or maybe it boiled.

It had to be a dream. 

No.

A nightmare.

What the _fuck_ was _he_ doing here?

He smiled and it was like she was back at the bar, taking a flower from a handsome man with a devilish grin that she wanted to know everything about.

Five years changed a lot. 

His previously short hair was now longer, swept behind one ear, the long black locks curled slightly at the base of his neck and sat at his shoulders. It was probably long enough to tie up. He had a nose piercing and his entire stature was broader and taller despite him not actually growing in height. His face was sharper and more defined, like time had chiseled its way through his face.

His eyes were the same though, taunting, watchful and mysterious, a lot like a cat.

“It’s been a long time huh?” He said, his lips hitching. 

She snapped out of the shock and steadied her voice to the cold impassivity she had mastered. Never let an enemy know how much they’d blindsided you. No matter how much they caught you off guard, always act as if you had seen them coming from a mile away. 

“What are you doing here, Jaebum?”

Im Jaebum watched her carefully like he was waiting for her to pounce and gouge his eyes out, “I—“

“Of all the shit I’m dealing with right now I’m not in the mood to see my ex. I thought I made it clear I wanted to never see you again.” She barked, putting distance between him and her.

Jaebum bit down on his lower lip, “Fuck I missed that attitude of yours. No one kept me more on my toes. Loved fighting with you to get a word in.”

She closed her eyes, his appearance already exhausting her, “Jaebum I can’t do this. I’m over you but I can’t do this right now. I can’t have you here acting like it isn’t completely insane that you’ve shown up in front of me after five fucking years.”

He slid his hands into the pockets of his long coat. She wondered if he was still a banker or if he moved to Floor Broker. She knew that’s what he always wanted to do, “I know I’m the last person you ever want to see but I needed to see you.”

“Why?” She asked with narrowed eyes. 

He smiled, “It’s you. And while you probably don’t even think of me anymore, all I do is think about you. I just finally had the courage to actually reach out to you today.”

"What do you want Jaebum? Money? A job? I can’t do that for you.” She hissed. She wanted to push him away, to shove him back physically with her hands. 

“I don’t need any of that. I want a second chance.” He said, rolling his shoulders back.

She _had_ to be hearing things. 

Or her brain was just conjuring up absurd scenarios just to test her. 

There was no way he was serious.

If he actually had the confidence to stand in front of her and ask for a second chance as if he believed that she’d ever give it to him, he must have collectively forgotten the day he broke up with her. 

How dare he just walk in here and demand a second chance like it was something she owed him.

To say she was shocked wasn’t enough to describe the state she was in, "What did you just say?”

“Okay, no, I know a second chance is a lot and overwhelming I just want to ask you for coffee or brunch. Just a chance to show you who I really am.” He said, stepping closer to her. 

She laughed at that, “Oh Jaebum, I know exactly who you really are. I don’t need you to talk over scones and eggs to figure that out. You're the prick who abandoned me and Lucy after lying about how much you 'loved _’_ us.”

“I never lied about how much I loved you both. I miss you and Lucy. I just wanted to tell you the truth behind why I left all those years ago because it’s not the reason that I gave you that day. Those were lies.” He said.

She hesitated, a part of her was piqued with curiosity but the reality was obvious, “I can’t believe you have the nerve to do this after all these years. You had plenty of chances to come clean but not now. Not after I’ve moved on, I’ve accepted the end of what we had and Lucy finally stopped asking about you.”

“You need to know the truth.” He pressed. She could see the desperation fill his eyes. Good.

She scoffed, “No, the truth doesn’t matter anymore. It wouldn’t change anything.”

“Maybe you’re right. Maybe this was a lost cause and I should’ve known better than to even try to approach you but if there’s even a slight chance that your heart is willing to hear me out. I can’t give up.” His looked away and the heartache was evident. She used to dream of this moment. Where he’d come to her and tell her how much he wanted her back. When they first broke up, she would imagine how she’d run back into his arms.

Now that it was actually happening, it left her hollow.

He stepped closer and she just shook her head, “You broke my heart. You hurt Lucy. She spent months crying asking where you were and when you were coming back and I didn’t have an answer for her.”

“I want to make it up to you both so badly.” He begged. She used to miss his voice at night when she was forced to lay in bed in silence. She missed his heat against her spine, his lips on her skin, and his fingers on her.

But she had long stopped missing him. 

It took her a while to understand but she learned that when someone walks out of your life they’re not someone that deserves to be welcomed back in. 

Not her father. 

And not Jaebum.

She looked so sad, “Why now? All of a sudden.”

“Because I finally think I can truly make you and Lucy happy.” He said with a soft smile. “I’m in a better place than I was.”

She scoffed, "You already were making us happy before you left. I can’t do this again with you. I can’t risk you hurting the both of us. Not again.” 

He walked up to her and even though he hadn’t touched her, she pressed herself against her desk. He stood close to her and she was hit with his cologne. The same one he’d always wear when they were together. It flooded nostalgia through her system and brought back memories that she swore she had locked away.

“Then just give me a chance to explain what happened those years ago and if you still never want to see me; I’ll leave you alone for good.”

He reached up and brushed her hair back behind her ear and immediately something felt wrong. She looked up at him, her eyes searching his expression and only seeing sincerity. Something still wasn’t sitting right with her and she couldn’t for the life of her figure out what.

“I don’t have feelings for you anymore. Nothing you say will change that.” She bit out.

His thumb stroked down her cheek, “Okay then at least I want you to know how I’ve never stopped lovi—“

“Duchess? What the hell is going on?”

God, it was like every time she heard Mark’s voice something would unwind inside her and turbulent, violent emotions would soothe into a calm rhythm. 

She looked over Jaebum shoulder to where Mark was standing. She wanted nothing more than for him to come stand next to her, preferably with a hand on her arm. He just eased every part of her with his presence alone. He never made her feel defensive or cornered. 

Jaebum turned and locked eyes with Mark. In a second Mark’s face darkened and he pulled his gun and cocked it at him. Heiran gasped and held her hands out, stepping away from Jaebum. “Woah! Mark! Calm down! I know him. Put the gun because down everything is fine. I’m not in danger.”

Mark’s eyes darted between her and Jaebum, astonishment on his face, “What do you mean you know him?”

“Yeah. This is Jaebum, he’s my ex that I told you about. So you can put the gun down. Everything’s okay.”

Something shifted in Mark’s eyes, they hardened and his jaw tightened. His entire body tensed and she knew that something was going wrong. Mark never reacted like that. 

“Heiran…”

That was the second time he said her real name.

“…that’s DS.” 


	20. Twentieth

“You’re lying.” 

Heiran had been chanting that for the last 10 minutes. 

Mark and Jaebum could only watch helplessly as she paced back and forth, “Heiran…”

“No!” She screamed, holding either side of her head, “No! I refuse to believe that my ex-boyfriend is the leader of some gang. Do you know how insane that sounds? This isn’t possible.”

Mark let out a long breath. He was also reeling from the new information. When he walked into Heiran’s office today, he thought he was just going to lay around on her couch until she was done for the day. Seeing his enemy and her threat reaching out to touch her wasn’t on his top 100 list of things he would have to deal with.

And then she called him her ex-boyfriend. 

He stepped towards her once he realized the situation, “Duchess, maybe you should sit down. I know him. That's DS.”

“How? How is this even possible?” She snapped, her glare finally landing on Jaebum, “You were like in your early 20s when we dated. How are you a crime boss? You’re full of shit.”

He slid his hands into his pockets, “I wasn’t the boss back then.”

“Yeah, he was probably just a third rate lackey.” Mark hissed. 

Jaebum clenched his jaw and scowled, “Kind of like you are now.”

“Enough.” She seethed, “This is about me. And how my ex is a gang member. And _lied_ about it.”

He flinched, meeting her eyes, “That’s what I wanted to talk about. I didn’t mean to lie about it. I want to come clean.”

“Really?” Mark snorted.

She tensed, her body shaking from rage, “But you did lie about it. If you didn’t mean to lie, you would’ve come clean a lot sooner.”

“He—“

“Years. We were together for _years_. How could you have kept something like this from me? You were around Lucy when she was a baby and the entire time you were a criminal. Did you ever bring a gun around her?” She snapped.

Jaebum looked away and she scoffed, “I can’t _believe_ you. I can’t believe you did this to me.”

“Fuck, Seo, please hear me out.” He pleaded.

Mark barked out a laugh, “Why? So you can lie to her again?”

“Mark…” She mumbled tiredly. 

He glanced at her before sighing and moving to stand behind her. She rubbed her forehead in an attempt to stop herself from passing out, “Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

“Because I knew it would hurt you and I wanted to keep you as far away from that life as possible. At first, I didn’t know where our relationship was heading but by the time I was in love with you, I knew it was too risky to tell you.” He explained. 

Heiran gulped and looked away. Was there any point in getting mad now? They’ve been broken up for years now, reconciling didn’t mean anything. Neither did holding a grudge or getting mad at him. 

The only thing that ticked her off was the fact that she was constantly being abandoned and played by men who were criminals, linked to the same world. It wasn’t fair that every time she started to feel less alone, she’d have the rug pulled out from under her.

“Wait.” Mark said, stepping forward. 

Heiran reached a hand out to stop him, “Mark, enough.”

“No, hang on.” He muttered, stepping towards him, “Did you know about her dad?”

Jaebum narrowed his gaze, “What?”

“When you two were a thing, did you know her dad ran GOT7?” Mark asked. 

Jaebum glared, “This doesn’t involve you, Mark. Mind your own fucking business and stay out of this.”

“Answer him.” Heiran whispered.

Jaebum opened his mouth before shutting it with a glower. "Listen—“

“Answer his question.” She barked.

He closed his eyes, “Yes, I did.”

“Oh my god.” She whispered, “Is that…is that why you dated me? Why you even came up to me?”

Jaebum reached out to touch her but before she could duck out, Mark shot his hand out and gripped his wrist, twisting it away. “Don’t fucking touch her.”

He hissed and ripped his hand out Mark’s hold. He instinctively reached for his gun but Mark stepped towards him, “Do it, I dare you.”

Heiran scoffed at Jaebum, “Fuck off.”

“You were an assignment at first.” His tone softened when he addressed her, dropping his arm away from his gun, “They wanted me to get close to you to see if you knew anything about your father. If there was anything I could learn about you that we could use to our advantage.”

Now that hurt.

To be abandoned _and_ used by the same man. 

The only man she thought she loved.

Heiran let out three short breaths and fisted her hands to avoid imploding. “You’re a monster. I can’t fucking _believe_ you used me like that.”

“At first yeah, I was just doing my job but the more time I spent with you, the harder it became to lie to you. I started to actually have feelings for you and the next thing I know I fe—“

“Fell in love with me? How cute.” She deadpanned, white-hot rage trembling through her, “I loved you so much. I wanted to build a life with you. You made me so happy, I thought that I would never find myself another man like you but you’re just a coward. If you were so in love with me, you should’ve told me the truth.”

“I couldn’t. If I told you, you would’ve left me.” He whispered, “You would’ve hated me and I was selfish because I didn’t want to let you go. And if I told you the truth and someone found out? I would’ve been pulled off the assignment and you could’ve been in danger.” 

She ran a hand through her hair, “You were just playing with me our entire relationship. Was there _anything_ you were honest about?”

“Look, when you started talking about marriage, and the future, I was so happy. More than happy. All I wanted was a life with you, but I couldn't bring you into my world like that. I lied to my boss, told him I broke up with you. If I married you, you'd be in danger especially because of who your father was.” He explained. "But my feelings were real."

“How heroic.” Mark snarked. 

Heiran stiffened, “If you love me so much why did you target me? Once you found out that I was the person who allegedly put your man in jail, you could've just backed out, and gone after my dad or someone else. You knew it wasn't really me who screwed up and got your guy arrested. You were one of the only few people who knew I had no relationship with my father. You could've kept me out of it entirely but you didn't. You essentially took out a hit on me even though you knew I was innocent. Why? Why did you do all of this to me?"

Jaebum eyes grew misty, emotions she didn't recognize spun as he stared at her, "I can't tell you."

"Did you think I really was working with GOT7? That I flipped to the dark side after you left me?" She muttered.

"Of course not! I just wanted to save you from this life and being tied to it.” He whispered. "It's complicated and there's a lot going on. I can't say much about it now but you have to know I did those things because I had to. You were never in any real danger. None of it real. It was all intimidation and those threats were always empty. Your life wasn't at risk." 

She scoffed, “That doesn’t make any sense! You threatened me, you hurt me, you kidnapped me and tried to hurt Lucy. You made my life hell, I spent every second terrified. What the hell is wrong with you? How is that saving me? How was I not in danger?”

He laced his fingers behind his head, “It got out of hand, but you were never supposed to be hurt in any of that. I tried so hard to keep you safe. It was...fake.”

“Fake? You kidnapped me!” She screamed at the top of her lungs, throwing the rose at him, “Your men beat me up, harassed and threatened me! That was all _very_ real to me. You tried to keep me safe? No. Mark kept me safe. Do you know what I've been through because of you? Rot in hell.”

Jaebum tensed, “They weren’t supposed to touch you. It was all just to scare your dad into letting me talk to Mark.” He said weakly.

Mark's jaw clicked, “You took her to The Bunker.”

“And she just sat there. She didn't experience it.” Jaebum growled. "She was supposed to be kept there until we reached her father."

"Of course! Everything that happens to me is because of my father, isn't it?" She heaved. “I was just a means to an end. You didn’t hesitate to traumatize me for life just because you wanted to chit chat with Mark. Even all these years later, you’re still using me." 

His shoulders sunk, "I'm sorry. I was livid when I saw what they'd done to you." He glanced over at Mark, “That’s why I kept them there when you went down to get her.”

“So I could kill them for you? I thought you said that if I worked for you, you’d never send me around like a pitbull with a gun.” Mark growled. “So much for offering me a better life.”

Heiran gasped, “You offered him a job? What the fuck is your problem?”

“He’s a sociopath, that’s what.” Mark grumbled. 

Jaebum sighed, desperate, “It’s hard to explain right now. It’s complicated, I know it all looks bad but one day it'll all make sense how I did this for you. I’ve never stopped loving you, I would do anything for you. I never intended for you to get hurt. Please remember that."

Heiran shook her head, “If I have to hear _it's complicated_ one more time, I'm going to fucking lose it. You’re obviously lying about something if you can’t even tell me WHY you pretended to target me even if you knew it wasn’t my fault. You dodge my every question. I still have no clue why you did this. Why come after me when I'm innocent? Why threaten me and scare me? How was any of this supposed to save me from this life like you claim?“

Mark grumbled reluctantly, “I don’t know if he’s telling the truth about everything but it does make sense that none of the threats got close to you no matter how many opportunities they had, nothing was ever carried out except the kidnapping. They had plenty of opportunities they never took.”

“Bullshit, but okay, fine, let’s pretend that you’re telling the truth. Where does this leave us now? There’s no real threat against me anymore. I now know the 'truth'. So I’m free, right? Nothing will ever happen to me. Life can go back to normal. No more looking over my shoulder, right?” She asked, her eyes shaking. 

He gave her a look, “It’s not that simple.”

“I bet.” Mark muttered.

Heiran was exasperated, “Yes it is. It is that simple. You made the threat, so you can call it off. I mean, you _just_ said that the plan was never to actually kill me for revenge. So I have nothing to be scared of.”

“Like I said, there is a lot more going on behind the scenes and I can't explain everything yet. But the cops are getting involved now. Someone’s gonna have to pay.”

She was stunned, "Wait, but I'm not involved in any of this, you know that. So, I'm not the one that needs to pay, let me off the hook."

Jaebum gulped, “Look, nothing will happen to you, I promise, but with the cops circling both our gangs, your friend Yugyeom included, you’re still at risk of being involved in everything. Even without me, your name is still on those accounts and transactions. You're still tied to illegal activity on paper.” 

“But—“

“And I have allies.” He said quietly, “Allies that operate on their own. They’ve found your name and they think you jeopardized all of them, it’s only a matter of ti—“

“So, you’re saying that now I have multiple targets on my back and instead of clearing my name, you just let them come for me. Fucking hooray!” She yelled, tears filling her eyes. 

He rocked on his heels, "I can't control their every move. Your name was spread too fast and knowing the police has our man is making everyone edgy. Since my threats were empty they're going to take things into their own hands."

Mark rubbed his forehead, “What the fuck, Jaebum?”

“Shut up.” Jaebum hissed.

Heiran’s eyebrow twitched, “Don’t bark at him.”

“Say it!” Mark goaded, “If you have something to say, fucking say it, jackass.”

Heiran felt her head throb, “Mark…”

“Fine. I should’ve fucking aimed that knife at your chest instead of your hip. Should've let you bleed out.” 

Mark chuckled and tried to step around Heiran to get in Jabeum’s face, “Like I would've let you get that cl—“

_SMACK!_

Mark’s lips parted in shock as he stared at the red handprint blooming on Jaebum’s cheek.

Heiran’s voice sounded inhuman to him. “You’re the one who stabbed him? You could’ve killed him, you asshole! I had to be the one that put him together. He would’ve bled out on my floor and I would’ve had to live with losing him. You had no right to get angry at him. You had no right to hurt him! You do not touch what’s mine.”

Jaebum clenched his teeth at that, “He came to me wearing my fucking ring, telling me that as long as he was alive, I wouldn’t get 100 feet near you.”

“And he was right.” She growled, “You think I’m just going to open my arms and let you back in? No, and that ring isn’t yours anymore.”

Jaebum’s eyes softened and it made her feel like she was 23, in love while looking at the face that was once synonymous with home. “Please don't say that, Seo. Give me a chance. Let me make it up to you.”

“You could’ve made it up to me long before I was dragged into the middle of all of this. You could’ve been a decent person. But no. You lied. You hurt me. You allowed other people to hurt me. I will never trust you for as long as live.” It was like her mood suddenly switched and the anger that was threatening to boil over was replaced with deadly calmness. 

It was worse than the anger. 

“Get out.” She muttered. It felt like their break up all over again. “Actually, we’ll leave.”

Heiran grabbed Mark’s hand and dragged him to the door before stopping and turning to Jaebum, “You know, if you had told me the truth instead of leaving me, I would’ve been furious, but I could’ve forgiven you. That’s how much I loved you. But you don’t get to come back here claiming you love me after you abandoned me, torture me, hurt the people I care about, and then expect me to forget everything with one shitty explanation 5 years later.”

And then she left.

\-----

“Wanna talk about what just happened?” Mark asked as he drove them away from her office. 

She clenched her jaw, “I could ask you the same thing.”

“What do you mean?”

She glanced at him, “Obviously I’m not the only one he shares a history with.”

“Nothing as dramatic as sleeping with him.” He grumbled. 

Heiran scowled, “I loved him.”

“Yeah, you keep saying that.” 

She fisted her hands, “What the hell does that mean?”

“Don’t get mad at me. All I mean is that saying you loved him, past tense, isn’t an excuse or a reason anymore.” He explained gently. "You don't owe him anything because of a feeling you used to feel."

She pursed her lips, “I know that. Why else do you think I walked out of there?”

"Then stop saying you loved him. It's inconsequential." He said. 

She rolled her eyes, "Yeah, yeah."

Mark shook his head, “I still can’t believe you dated him.”

“I know, and I can’t believe I’m back in the same shitty position that got me into this mess.” She muttered. "He was a good actor. Fell for everything he used to tell me."

She noticed Mark was driving in the opposite direction of her house but didn’t comment on it. Mark tapped his fingers against the wheel, “He wants you back.”

“I don’t want him back so he can do whatever he wants. He's just lucky I don't rat him out to the police on the spot.” She snapped.

"Okay." Mark said simply.

Silence ensued before Heiran started to talk, "It just makes me mad that he thinks he can come into my life and screw it up this badly. Like my father didn't do enough damage already. I can't help but think about our relationship, all of the good memories, and how the entire time, he was hiding this huge secret. I keep looking for signs. How do you not realize your boyfriend was a gang member?"

Mark didn't reply, he couldn't. What was he supposed to say? 

So he let her vent.

"I just want to kick myself for all of it." She said in irritation, "For letting him into mine and Lucy's lives, for giving him everything I gave him. I'm not even betrayed because what's done is done. But I'm mad about everything he did once he came back into my life, knowing our history. Kidnapping me, threatening Lucy. You just don't hurt the people you claim you love like that. He won't tell me the real reason behind all of this. He won't say anything other than 'it's complicated', what am I supposed to do with that?"

He nodded as he pulled up to a parking lot, "You're right."

"It's all just so sucky." She paused before peaking up at the building. “Why are we here?”

Mark turned off the car and opened the door, “You’re going to stay with me at my _real_ apartment.”

The thought of being far, far away from her office, Jaebum, and her problems was very appealing, “What about Lucy?”

“I’ll tell Yugyeom to bring her by.”

“Do you really want him to know where your real place is? If what Jaebum said is true and he’s working with the police to come after DS and GOT7, it doesn’t seem like the best option.” She asked. 

He shrugged, “Don’t really have a choice, if anything, I’ll move.” He grunted as he stepped out. "Not really attached to the place anyways."

Heiran followed him into the building, her eyes widening at the beautiful lobby with marble floors and crystal chandeliers, “So DS wasn’t always DS?”

Mark nodded at one of the men in the lobby before pressing the button for the elevators, “No, another man ran it but then he died during a shoot out. Jaebum took over. Went by DefSoul or DS.”

“He’s a leader of a gang.” She muttered before stepped into the elevator with Mark. “For years, I gave him everything. He knew everything about me and every part of me. I wanted to be his wife. And he lied to me the entire time. What if he never broke up with me? Would he have just married me without coming clean?”

Mark leaned against the wall of the elevator and watched her. Of course, Jaebum had her, of course, she loved him in the past. Of all people to have been with her and know her like that, so intimately, of course it was Jaebum.

It was like there was nothing in Mark’s life that wasn’t tainted by the reminder of him. He could see it, to be honest. He could see her with him, kissing him, planning a future, and building a life together. Jaebum had the same dominating alpha personality that Heiran had, they could've been a power couple. The only difference was that Heiran still had kindness in her.

Hell, she was right. This was sucky. 

“I don’t know, duchess. But there’s no point in dwelling on the what ifs.” He said. He couldn't bring himself to say more. To enagage with her about Jaebum. 

She closed her eyes and sighed until the elevators dinged. The doors slid open and he led her his door. “Welcome.”

Heiran’s eyes ran around the room to soak in the decor, “Woah, this place is really nice. I can’t believe you’ve been living in that dump instead.”

“Now you know my pain. I’ll get you some clothes to change into.” He said with a snort.

Heiran took the moment of silence to walk around his living room, stopping at his fish tank while letting her thoughts spin. It almost felt surreal, like everything that happened in her office was just a sick, sick, nightmare that she had woken up from hours ago. 

A distant memory.

But no. 

It was real.

The man she had trusted and wanted to spend her life with was no different than her father, doing all the same awful, distrusting sketchy garbage that he did. He tricked her. Used her. And now, was making her life all the more difficult even though she thought she was over him.

“So, where does this leave us?” She muttered when Mark walked back into the room. 

He handed her the clothes, “I don’t know. I guess there are still threats against you, but it won’t be from DS. It’ll be from his allies. He might try to stop them but he’s right, he won’t have a lot of control if they chose to go off on their own. Although I'm not sure how many allies he has.”

“I can't believe this. I was pulled into this mess because of him and even though he says he won't hurt me, I'll still be in danger. One threat gone, another hundred appear. He could've been the one to stop it all, you know, but he's made it worse.” She muttered while standing and heading to the room that Mark had just come from. "Ugh and the police."

He trailed behind her, not having his eyes on her made him anxious. She was barely inside when she started pulling off her blazer and kicking off her heels. Mark bent down, picking up everything she left behind. “The police are going to be harder to dodge. I didn’t know that we were even on their radar. I’ll have to tell your father and we're going to have to come up with a plan.”

"I guess I can poke around and see what I can get from Yugyeom." She suggested.

He straightened up to see Heiran pulling off her blouse and tossing it aside. He quickly averted his gaze and picked it up, focusing his eyes on the Dior label. He sat down on the bed and laid on his back.

Anything to avoid seeing her in a bra. 

“My father. Great.” She mumbled. “Mark?”

“Hmm?” He let out through his ground teeth.

She fell silent and he finally pushed himself up on his elbows to look at her. Yeah, this was somehow worse than seeing her in her bra and underwear. 

Heiran was pushing the sleeves of his sweater up her arms before rolling up the cuffs on the sweatpants. She was drowning in his clothes and compared to the designer ones that she was in before, she looked like a different person in the sweats. 

Looked a bit more like him. 

Definitely smelled like him. 

He wanted to hold her so badly.

“What is it?” He breathed out. 

She sat down next to him and slouched, “Please don’t tell my father that Jaebum is my ex.”

“You think he doesn’t already know?” He pointed out. 

She shook her head, “He would’ve brought it up already and so would Jaebum. I think him not knowing just gave Jaebum all the advantage he needed.”

Laying down, Heiran reached out and gripped the back of his jacket, pulling him down next to her, “Seeing him again, hurts.”

“Do you really not have feelings for him anymore?” He asked, looking over at her. 

She swung her legs, “No, I don’t. But it hurts all over again knowing much he lied to me. At least I cut my dad off. But Jaebum, I loved him long after he left without knowing all of this. I spent a long time trying to figure out what I did wrong and blamed myself. I feel like a fool.”

“You were a fool.” Mark deadpanned. 

She scoffed, “Excuse me!”

“But you were in love. People search their whole lives trying to be a fool.” He said. 

Her lids were heavy, everything from today was taking a toll on her, “Not the way I was. Not the way you regret."

“Well, Jaebum’s entire vibe is making people regret ever knowing him.” Mark said dryly.

“Can you tell me how you knew him, now?” She asked, hooking her arm with his. 

God, she made him so comfortable, it was terrifying. He had to pay extra attention when he was around her, “We knew each other growing up.”

"You said you had a tough time growing up." She mentioned.

He nodded, "Jaebum was part of that tough time, I guess."

“What was he like when you knew him?”

Mark turned to face her, “Why?”

She shrugged, “Right, you’re right, that’s a weird question.”

Damn it. 

Why was he so bad at drawing boundaries with her? 

“I think he might’ve been a good person at some point, by the time he was in my life, a lot of that goodness was gone.” Mark said quietly with a touch of sadness. 

She peered up at her, “What do you mean?”

“It takes a certain type of person to be able to take over an entire criminal organization at 30 years old. He was that kind of person. I wasn’t.” He explained. "That caused a lot of conflict."

"Where did you guys meet?" She asked.

He smiles dryly, "That's enough questions for tonight, duchess."

She hummed and pressed her face into his arm, “Can I go to sleep and never wake up?”

“That’s called death, duchess.” He mused.

She huffed, “Death would be better than having to wake up and see his face again.” 

“Knowing him, he won’t give up on you.” Mark said quietly. 

She ran her fingers through her hair, working on the knots, “I’ve given up on him a long time ago.”

“People can change.” He ground his teeth, there was a weird possessiveness that washed over him. 

He wasn’t a perfect man and he knew that in Heiran’s life, she probably didn't see him as a longtime fixture, but he knew he’d be better to her than Jaebum ever would. He knew he could be so good to her in a way that Jaebum never was. And there was something about Jaebum storming into both their lives, trying to take her away from him, trying to ‘win her back’ that infuriated him.

In this time he spent with her, Mark felt like he built something honest with her, but Jaebum was a tornado that aims to knock every tall standing building to the ground.

But fuck, who was Mark in her life to even have an opinion?

She shot him a disgusted look, “Are you seriously on his side about this?”

“No, I’m not. I think he’s a major dickhead, that he really doesn’t deserve a second chance from you or Lucy and he’s a dangerous person. But it’s your life, you owe it to yourself to decide on the present and not the past.” He said. 

She laughed, “Sickening. I'll give him the time of day once he mans up and tells me the truth about why he pretended to want me dead.”

“But whatever you choose, just remember one thing.” He prompted. 

Heiran quirked an eyebrow, “What?”

“He stabbed me.” 

She gasped and sat up, “I know! How did you let that happen? You usually win.” 

“Well, I wasn’t really paying attention.” He snorted, no, he was too busy threatening him with her on his mind. 

She reached over and lifted his shirt. She winced at the scar, “I should’ve stabbed him, see how he likes it.”

Mark’s lip quirked up as he watched her, she craned her neck and brushed her fingers around it. He reached up to tuck her hair back behind her ear, “Wish I could’ve seen that.”

His eyes skimmed down the bridge of her nose and landed on her lips. It sent shivers through her. She kind of wished one day he’d just act on her instead of just staring at her. She didn’t know how exactly she felt about Mark yet, but she knew that if he just kissed her once, she’d figure it out. 

She had long abandoned her distaste towards Mark being a member of GOT7. But she wasn't sure what emotion replaced that previous negativity.

“You're tired.” He mumbled, fingers in her hair, “You had a hard day. Go to sleep, We can talk about it tomorrow.”

She moved so he could sit up, watching him stand. He glanced at her by the door, “Eventually, we’re going to have to talk to Jaebum, find out what else he knows and figure out a game plan especially if your dad doesn’t know.”

“You won’t tell him?” She asked. 

He shrugged, “It’s none of his business.”

\-----

Heiran fell asleep the second her head hit the pillow but Mark was awake, waiting for Yugyeom to come by to drop Lucy off. About twenty minutes later, a knock was at his door. 

Mark pulled his sweater passed his knuckles, hoping it’d cover the tattoo before opening the door. 

“Hey, man. Hey, kid.” Mark greeted.

Yugyeom gave him an awkward smile, “Hey…where’s Heiran?”

“Sleeping in the guest room.” Mark mumbled as he watched Lucy walk into his apartment, look around before coming back to stand by his leg. She was clearly unsure being in a new place and clung to Mark.

“Is this your place?” Yugyeom asked. 

Mark faced him, hoping to remain calm, “Yeah it is.”

“Not gonna lie but it’s kinda weird that she’s sleeping over at her assistant's place.” Yugyeom said. “Is something wrong with her house?”

Mark cleared her throat, “No but um…her ex showed up at her office. She was kinda rattled, so she came here to do some work, and then it got late so she asked to stay.”

“Oh, fuck. Really? Well, that makes a lot more sense. He was always a prick.” Yugyeom said. "Is she okay? I can't believe he just showed up after all this time."

Mark nodded, “Yeah, she's pissed but okay.”

Yugyeom slid his hands into his pockets, “Okay, I guess. Tell her to call me tomorrow.”

“Gotcha.” Mark said, about to close the door.

“By the way, you make good money as a PA?”

Mark blinked at Yugyeom, sizing him up. He wasn't an expert but he was pretty sure PA's made shit money. “I mean, I do alright. Why?”

Yugyeom’s eyes roamed around his apartment, “Just curious.”

\-----

Heiran wasn’t sure how long she’d been tucked under the covers of Mark’s guest room bed. She could hear him outside in the living room shuffling around and she tried to fall asleep by imagining him in this apartment on a regular day. 

How he’d make himself lunch, shower, do chores, watch TV, read a book before getting under the covers, and falling asleep himself. 

It was nice and made her feel warm, her eyelids were getting heavy but before she could really fall asleep her phone buzzed. Glancing at the unknown number, she answered it cautiously, refusing to say the first word.

“Holy shit I didn't think you'd pick up, Seo.”

She hissed, “Fuck.”

“Wait, don’t hang up. Please.” Jaebum whispered. 

She sat up and stared at her lap, trying to imagine Lucy in an attempt to calm herself down, “What do you want?”

“I know that conversation didn’t go well. I know after everything you learned, you must hate me. I know asking for a second chance isn’t fair to you, so I won’t. But I want to help you, I want to fix this and at least make up for everything I did.”

She fisted Mark’s blanket and pulled it up to her nose to breathe it in. It smelled like lavender. Mark never smelled like lavender. Now she was imagining him doing laundry while humming to some random tune. 

“You could start by not calling me.” She muttered. 

He sighed, “Just know that everything I do, no matter how absurd or insane, I’m doing it to try to protect you. It will all make sense. I promise. I know I have a long way to go to make it up to you but I won't stop.”

She chewed on her lip, “Okay well, if that’s all, I should g—“

His voice was timid, “Do you have feelings for him?” 

“What?” She deadpanned.

She could hear his smile, “For Mark. You told me I wasn’t allowed to touch what was yours. Is he yours?”

“You think I’d tell you anything?” She snapped. 

Jaebum’s laugh came out stunned and a little hurt, “Wow, I guess that answers my question.”

Heiran gulped, “I’m hanging up.”

\-----

“Want something to eat?” Mark asked as Lucy followed him into his apartment. 

She rocked on her heels and blinked up at him with her sweet doe eyes, “Fruit?”

“Yeah, sit.” He said, pointing to the stools along his kitchen island. When she struggled to climb, he sighed and grabbed her under the arms and lifted her up. 

Once situated, he pulled some fruit out of the fridge, judging by the fact that none of it was covered in fuzz, he was pretty sure Jinyoung was restocking. 

“You like apples?” He asked. 

She nodded and watched him slice the fruit onto a plate. “Is this your house?”

“Yeah, you like it?” He asked. 

She looked around until she spotted the fish, “Oh my god!”

He looked up from the plate to see her pressing her face against the glass. His lips twitched and he carried the plate over to her. “Here.”

She took the plate and began eating, “What’s his name?”

“Nemo.”

Lucy gasped loudly and turned to stare at him. A laugh escaped his lips, “Yeah, like the movie.”

He watched as she stared at Nemo with wide-eyed excitement, innocently munching on the apple slices. 

It took him a while to warm up to her, to stop seeing her like some mutant creature but as something worth protecting and caring for. He tried to see Jaebum’s perspective, no matter how much he hated him. He was right, it would’ve been dangerous if his gang found out that he had feelings for Heiran or that he told her the truth. And Lucy would've been dragged into it.

But he left them for so long with a shitty explanation. 

He knew Jaebum was cruel but this was just a whole other level. 

This was why Mark never wanted relationships like this, ones that would last because hurting people and leaving them not because you want to, but because you had to, was sick. It changes a person. And knowing what he knew about Jaebum after all these years, he probably thought with his head first and his heart after. 

Maybe he didn’t want to leave them, but at the end of the day, he still did. And when he showed up years later, it was after tormenting the woman he claimed he loved. 

He had always been protective of Heiran but knowing that Jaebum was her ex and had feelings for her, he felt even more pressure to make sure she didn’t get hurt. Men like Jaebum leave your life with scars and come back just to reopen them. 

Maybe Lucy was too young to remember him, lucky for her. 

Heiran deserved to be with someone would make her happy and who she never had to worry would leave her. Someone who didn’t have ulterior motives or sought her out with the need to use her. Someone who just fucking cared and wanted her.

How low was the bar?

Fuck, he wasn’t sure how many times he thought it but if things were different, he’d want to be that person.

But maybe things could be different.

“How old is Nemo?”

Mark snapped out of his thoughts and looked at the tank, “Umm, not sure, but I’ve had him for 2 years.”

“Wow.” She mumbled. 

“Wanna feed him?” He asked. 

She looked back at him with big puppy dog eyes, “Can I?”

“Yeah, hang on.” He slid the top of the tank open and set Lucy’s plate down before lifting her in his arms and handing her a little shaker of fish food. “Just shake it really hard 3 times.”

Lucy had one hand gripping the back of his shirt and the other holding the bottle and followed his instructions. He then crouched so she could see the way the fish swam up to the top to nibble at the flakes.

“Cool, right?” He said.

She nodded and watched for a little while longer before hugging his neck, “It’s okay that you’re not my dad.”

“What?” Mark asked, confused.

She rested her head on his shoulder, “It’s okay if you’re not my dad and not my mom’s boyfriend. Just stay with us. Don’t leave, please.”

“Oh.” He said, dumbfounded. 

She stretched a finger out to poke at the glass where Nemo had swum up to.

“Lucy?”

He turned at Heiran’s croaky voice to see her rubbing her eyes and walking to them, “Oh good, she’s back. I thought I heard you, sunshine.”

Lucy waved at her mom but quickly turned back to look at the fish. Heiran walked up to them and stared at the fish tank. 

He turned so that Lucy was facing her, “Do you want to take her?”

“It’s fine, she looks comfortable.” She said. 

Mark gulped and turned back. “Sorry if we woke you.”

“It’s okay, I was half-asleep, I want to make sure I heard her come in.” Heiran said. She glanced at the plate of half-eaten apples and smiled. Her palm slowly smoothed up Mark’s back but she didn’t address it, she just rubbed slow circles while he held Lucy.

And he _knew_ that this picture felt wrong. 

He _knew_ that Jaebum and his relationship to all of them were hanging threateningly over their heads.

And he _knew_ that this tableau wasn’t one that was meant to last. 

But for fuck’s sake, he wanted to know what it felt like if it did.

Maybe this was the inch. 

Even if it wasn’t, he’d take it.

\-----

It was the next morning when Heiran was in her office, that it happened. 

Thankfully Jaebum was gone and he had taken the rose with him. 

She was scrolling through emails, it seemed that as of late, her days were just filled with replying to emails. There used to be a time when she had files to manage and clients to juggle. 

It was strange how quiet things had been lately.

She should’ve known it was an omen. 

Especially when her inbox refreshed and a new email popped up with a bright red exclamation point, tagged as _URGENT_!

_Subject: SmartLogic Contract Termination Request_

Heiran felt her head spin and tried to calm herself down. She knew this was coming and although she felt underprepared to deal with it after everything that’s been thrown her way, it wasn’t the end of the world. 

She could terminate the contract and salvage the deal. Get rid of any crumb of GOT7’s involvement while keeping her job and find new deals and clients to make up the lost money that came in from SmartLogic. She could pacify Samsung. She had to.

Easy-peasy. 

Until her inbox refreshed again and another new email popped p with that same red exclamation mark. 

_Subject: Samsung Merger Termination_

Fuck.


	21. Twentyfirst

“Hey…detective?” Yugyeom called out as he lingered by the head detective’s desk.

The older man glanced at him briefly before looking back at the file in hand, “What’s up?”

“I was just wondering if there was any new information. I’ve sort of been sitting on my hands lately.” He mumbled. 

The detective rubbed his face, “Right, for the profiles. I don’t know what you tell you, Kim. GOT7 and DS’s teams move like ghosts, no one knows what they look like or who they are. It’s a struggle to even find out where they’re based out of. Anyone who knows who they are either don’t live to tell the tale or have no incentive to flip. We have nothing to give you.”

“I can’t build a profile with this. Everything we know about both their operations are super clinical and methodical. There’s no way to pull any sort of characteristic from that.” Yugyeom said with a frown.

The detective sighed, “I know, but I have nothing for you. We’re doing our best but these are elusive motherfuckers. You just have to wait.”

“Is there anything useful you have on them?” Yugyeom asked, exasperated with restlessness. 

He leaned back in his seat, “Not much. But they have money. Lots of it, but we have no clue where it’s coming from or where it’s being kept. It’s obviously being laundered but gangs are smarter these days, they don’t use laundry mats or salons. If we can track down the money, we could find them. They’re massive operations, so the way they clean and handle their money must be just as complicated and well thought out.”

“Or it’s in the Cayman Islands or a shell corporation.” Yugyeom suggested. 

“It’s possible, but they wouldn’t just have it stored away somewhere it could be found, unprotected. There’s a reason why they evade police capture every single time.” 

\-----

Heiran wondered if the men standing in front of her could see the sweat stains under her arms. 

She could definitely feel it. 

Rocking on her heel, she tried to even her breathing as her CEO massaged his temples. When Eun added the meeting on her calendar, Heiran knew what it was about. How couldn’t she? Everyone was talking about it. 

About how she bungled the Samsung merger. 

“I just don’t understand how this happened. Everything was going so well, you assured me of that. Next thing we know, I’m hearing that not only did one of our biggest investments fall through but the merger that my entire company is hinging on _also_ fell through. So, I have a lot of questions, Ms. Seo.”

Her ears were ringing. Her boss’s anger and disappointment had never been directed at her. She was always the one that he praised and complimented. She never fucked up this badly and she had nothing to say, no way to defend herself. 

She knew this would happen and that the fallout would be on her lap.

“Sir, I’m not trying to make excuses but I had protected and nurtured the negotiations between SmartLogic and Samsung. I did everything and built a solid relationship. There _was_ a solid relationship but SmartLogic was the one that had an issue with the merger. I can’t really be blamed for the entire termination.” She explained. 

The other men scoffed but her Boss just shook his head, “Exactly. That’s why I’m trying to make sense of why on _earth_ you would let a third party negotiate on their own? The representative from SmartLogic shouldn’t have any direct communication with Samsung let alone multiple meetings discussing terms without our legal team present or any sort of professional support. That was your call and I can’t believe you would be that unprofessional and reckless with an account this massive.”

She gulped rocks down her throat, she didn’t have a comeback for that. “I admit that it was an error in judgement to—“

“Ha!” The VP of Legal laughed condescendingly, “That’s one way to downplay the biggest hit this company has taken.”

Heiran resisted the urge to tighten her fist and deck him across the face. The CEO just sighed, “If that wasn’t bad, there’s been talk.”

“What talk?”

His lips fell into a thin line, “That you haven’t been coming to work without notifying your staff until mid-day. And when you _do_ show up, you leave early, take long lunches, run personal errands, and are overall inaccessible for your staff.”

Her lips parted, her heart thudding heavily in her chest. She felt like a child being scolded for skipping classes, “My team is very capable with minor supervision.”

The CEO scoffed, “Can you really say that after what happened? It’s not your staff I’m worried about. It’s you. What the hell is going on?”

“Sir, I was ill and whenever I leave early, I always stay late or come in early the next day. I make up for missing time.”

“People have stopped coming to you with files. New investment pitches have been sent to me. Have you even noticed?” He balked. 

She gulped. 

This was news to her. 

“Your own people are going over your head because they don’t trust your leadership. Your chain of command has completely broken down and Samsung pulling out is only breaking it down further.” He barked. 

Her throat felt dry and she could feel the VP of Legal and Research smirking at her from behind the CEO. Her face was hot, embarrassed that they were here to witness her first major fuck up. Especially after all the dust she had kicked up before. 

“M-My door is always open and I have no idea why they would feel the need to do that.”

The Legal VP scoffed, “Probably because your PA is always here even though he’s _personal_.”

“I know this is bad.” She said, “But I can talk to my contacts at Samsung and re-negotiate them away from terminating the merger. I can easily find new opportunities to invest that will work in their favour. I can keep them on board. I promise. Just give me a chance.”

He sighed, “I’m afraid you won’t be able to do anything at this time.”

She blinked at him in confusion, “What do you mean?”

“The board is furious about this. They want an internal investigation regarding your handling of the merger as well as the whole auditing thing. It’s a mess. The Board wants to know why you would let your SmartLogic rep negotiate the biggest merger this company has ever seen. We essentially lost millions of dollars in potential revenue not to mention the hours and resources that were wasted managing and maintaining both accounts.” He explained. 

Her eyes widened, “Wait, what?”

“You’re suspended with pay until the investigation is complete."

“Y-You can’t be serious. Sir, an investigation? Is that necessary? I can fix this, I can get the money back and open up communications with Samsung ag—“

He held his hand up, stopping her, “No. The Board can’t risk you doing anymore damage. I can’t risk it. We’ll find someone to step in so that your department is still running but you should gather your things and stay at home until we reach out to you.”

Her throat felt numb when he turned to leave before looking over at her with furrowed brows, “I’m very disappointed in you, Heiran.”

Once he walked out, her knees buckled and she leaned against her table in a daze. The VP of Legal smirked, hands in his pocket, “Not so cocky now, huh? Doesn’t pay to be a bitch.”

\-----

Jinyoung raised a brow but kept his gaze on his laptop when Yeonhee sat down across his table and waited patiently and silently. 

“What?” He muttered, his fingers fluttering over the keyboard. 

She huffed, “Jeez, sorry. I’ll come back later.”

“No.” He said with a soft sigh, “Stay. What’s up?”

She shrugged, “Nothing.”

“God, you’re annoying.” He grumbled, nudging his laptop aside. “Is this about Mark?”

“Fuck you.” She spat. 

He didn’t flinch, “Oh, how do you think I feel about this? I have to sit here and listen to you whine and pout about how you can’t fuck my best friend on the regular anymore.”

“I never said that I came here to whine.” She fired back with a glare. 

He sighed, “Fine. Whatever.”

He turned back to his laptop, ignoring her and the way she chewed on her lip while eyeing him. “Where is he?”

“Who?” He said, feigning ignorance. 

She narrowed her eyes at him, “You know who.”

“Jackson? I heard he’s at the firing range.”

“Mark!” She yelled, “Mark, okay! You’re right, that’s why I’m here.”

He looked at her and leaned back, “It shouldn’t matter anymore, Yeonhee. If you’re not working on an assignment with him, you don’t need to know where he is.”

“You’re an ass.” She hissed. 

He just blinked at her, his constant soothing, calmness that he’d bring with him whenever someone came to him with a woe morphed into a prick of anger, “He’ll never take you back. He won’t backslide. You know that.”

“I don’t care. Did I say I wanted him back?” She said indignantly, crossing her arms over her chest. 

Exhaustion plagued him, “Okay, Yeonhee. Say whatever you want, but I really hope that you’re okay doing this to yourself. Hope it’s worth it.”

“He likes her, doesn’t he?” 

Jinyoung paused, and sighed, “You’re not owed an explanation. He made a clean break. Whatever he’s doing now isn’t your business.”

“Jesus fuck. You might as well tell me I’m right if that’s your answer.” She muttered. 

He shook his head in resignation, “Go sleep with someone else. If you think that’s what he’s doing, then you should be doing the same.”

She said nothing and he watched her before feeling guilty, “Are you doing okay?”

“Fuck off, Park. I get it.” She snapped. 

He shook his head, “I mean it. I’m not going to feed into this unhealthy hang up you have about Mark, but I want to know if you’re alright.”

“If it was anyone else, I wouldn’t care.” She whispered, “If it was some random girl at a bar he picked up or some gun runner from one of our allies that he hits on, I could ignore it.”

Jinyoung took a deep breath, “Not that I’m admitting that he has feelings for her but, why does it bother you if it’s Heiran.”

“Because I could never be her.”

That was the first truly honest thing he had ever heard her say and it was also the most vulnerable. It twisted his gut uncomfortably. “Oh.”

“I know, it’s pathetic. I could buy all the same things, live the exact same lavish lifestyle, but I’ll never be like her.” Yeonhee said quietly, “If it was anyone else, I’d know that I could still compete. But choosing her, it’s someone better than me. Like I wasn’t good enough, like I never stood a chance.”

It never made sense to him how Yeonhee was so caught up with Mark. As much as she grated his nerves and was more like a nemesis to him, he wasn’t blind. She was pretty and Jackson had been chasing after her for years, as have a bunch of their low-tier allies. She could have a good pick of men if she wanted. Men who would thank her. Instead she chose the one man too emotionally muddled to feel the same way as her.

But Heiran who probably barely thought _twice_ about Yeonhee, turned her into this insecure ball of self-loathing. 

“You and Mark are too different.” He admitted.

She sneered at him, “And you think he and her are the same?”

“I think Mark needs someone who sees him in a different context outside someone from GOT7.” Jinyoung reasoned. "Someone who sees him for all the things that he doesn't want to admit he is." 

She laughed, “That’s not going to be her. He’s an idiot if he leaves GOT7 for her.”

Jinyoung said nothing and just watched her for a while before shaking his head, “I don’t know what you want from me.”

Her bitter smile died and she swallowed deeply, “I’m sorry.”

Sighing, he shut his laptop and grabbed his wallet before standing. He walked to her and kicked the chair, “Get up.”

She looked at him with a confused look, “What? Why?”

“We’re getting ice cream. I need a break.” He said, opening his door.

Opening her mouth before frowning, “Wa—“

“Hurry up. You’re buying.”

\-----

“You should eat something.” Yugyeom prodded, nudging the plate of pasta towards Heiran who was just laying on the couch with a blanket pulled over her shoulders, blankly staring at the TV.

“Not hungry.” She muttered. 

He sighed, setting the plate down before sitting on the floor to watch her carefully, “You’re not going to tell me about it?”

When he came by to drop off a blender he had burrowed, he expected her to tell him to leave it by her door because she was at work. He didn’t expect her to open the door, hair messed, makeup smudged and a blank stare. 

“There’s nothing to tell.” She muttered, her face pressed into the fabric of the couch. 

He had never seen her like this before, so defeated and moppy. His eyes widened when a realization hit him. Actually, there was one time and only one time that he had seen her act like this. 

“Is this because of Jaebum?”

Her entire body stiffened and her eyes shot to him. Finally, she pushed herself up and refocused her gaze to him, “What?”

“I know he came to see you. Why didn’t you tell me?” Yugyeom asked. 

The throbbing in her head grew. With everything happening at work, she hadn’t even thought about Jaebum crashing into her life and making himself a part of her life all these years later. She could no longer pretend that he didn’t exist. 

And she had to remember that the man she once loved more than life itself, wanted her back.

He still loved her. 

God, she used to pray for the day he wanted her back, too bad it didn't feel as good as she once hoped.

“How do you know about that?” She muttered. 

He raised a brow, “Mark told me.”

“Why are you two talking?” 

“Don’t change the subject. I didn’t know he was even in the city. What did he want?”

She sighed and leaned back, “Me, apparently.”

“What?” Yugyeom said with a laugh, “You can’t be serious.”

She shrugged, “He came to my office and said that he missed me, that he was sorry and that he was better now. Changed.”

“That’s a load of bulls—“

“He said he never stopped loving me.”

Yugyeom fell silent and eyed his friend wearily, “Heiran please.”

“No, I’m not an idiot. I don’t believe him.” She said, quickly waving him off. “I know how much you hate him."

Yugyeom pursed his lips, “I don’t think he’s lying.”

It was her turn to be incredulous, “Excuse me?”

“I knew that he loved you the day he broke up with you. He loved you more than I think you loved him, believe it or not. But how he felt about you has nothing to do with how he felt about having Lucy in his life. That’s why I’ll always hate him.” He said. 

Well, she also hated him for being a gangster that used her to get close to her father. But that was just her.

"None of that matters. I’m not going to take him back or anything. And that’s not why I’m in a mood today.”

He fought off a smile, “So, you laying around like the life was sucked out of you is classified as ‘being in a mood’ now? Good to know.”

“Shut up.” She hissed, but she really just sounded like a snake with its fangs removed. “It’s work. I’m just a little stressed and burnt out.”

He pouted with a nod, “I’m sorry. That’s rough. Why not take some time off to relax and reenergize?” 

She smiled dryly, technically she was going to be on a paid vacation for a really long time but she doubted it would relaxing, “Maybe.”

“Are you sure you’re okay?” He asked again. 

She nodded and looked away, “How’s work?”

“Meh, slow. I always thought that trying to take down big crime rings would be a lot more exciting than it is now.” He said. 

She gulped, “Any progress?”

“Not really. They don’t even know what the leaders of these gangs look like much less who they are. There’s not much for me to do. The detectives in charge are doing boring financial tracking blah blah. I start to tune it out when they stop talking about profiling.” He said. 

God, that made her sick.

“Oh.”

Yugyeom glanced at his watch before standing, “I need to head back. Try not to think about work, yeah? Call me if you need something.”

She nodded and they swapped goodbyes before she was closed back into the silence. She wondered what Mark was doing right now.

\-----

“I’m sorry, what?”

Mark was haggard. 

He used to think that he took good care of himself, even when he late-night assignments, he made sure he slept well before heading out or made up for it by sleeping in the following morning. He ate three meals a day, worked out, hell, he would even read a book or watch a movie when he had the time. 

But lately it felt like he was running on fumes. 

“I just wonder if maybe DS doesn’t want to take out Heiran. Maybe he’s after something else, something bigger.” 

His Boss was looking at him like he thought he was crazy, “He kidnapped her.”

“But he never really did serious damage. He could’ve chopped off her finger or waterboarded her. He just used her to get me to talk and then let me take her.” Mark explained, “He wants territory.”

The Boss just shook his head, “Impossible. How would he even go about getting it?”

“I’m not sure but that isn’t why I’m here. I’m worried that it’s not just DS after her now.” 

He snorted, “What are you talking about?”

“He has ally gangs, just like us. I think some of them might’ve heard about what Heiran ‘did’ and want their own revenge. I don’t think DS has the type of leash on them that we thought.” Mark explained, blinking slowly. 

“That’s not possible.” His Boss said with a stunned laugh. 

Mark could only shrug, “I don’t know what to tell you. I don’t think Heiran was ever a real target. I think there’s something else he’s after but I don't think his allies know that and now they want blood.”

His Boss frowned before tilting his head at Mark, “Did you talk to him?”

“Yeah, when I went to find Hei—“

“No.” He interrupted, “After. Did you speak to him after that?”

Mark hesitated and that was enough for his Boss to see through him, “Jesus, what are you doing, Mark? You can’t let him get to you like that. He’s in your head.”

“That’s not what’s happening.” Mark argued. 

His Boss gave him a look of sympathy, “Mark, he knows that he can use your history to manipulate you. To make you doubt your own instincts. He’s done this before, don’t let him do it again.”

“I know it looks like that, but I believe him.” Mark said. 

The Boss’s shoulders dropped, “Mark, he was going to come after Lucy. He made threats. She’s a child, that’s not okay.”

Mark felt his throat swell. That was true, even if Jaebum cared for Lucy, who knew what would’ve happened to her if he got to her before something happened? Jaebum claimed to love Heiran and that the threats weren't real but he still put her through hell when Lucy was taken. To her, that was as real as it could've got.

“You’re right.” Mark said quietly. “I know you’re right, but you need to hear me out. More people will be coming after Heiran. We need to be prepared for that.”

“Fine.” His Boss muttered in resignation, “Come up with a strategy and run it by me. We’ll see if it’s good but Mark, I’m being serious, you need to be careful. Don’t let him control you. Don't forget who he is.”

Mark just wanted to go to sleep. 

“I promise, sir.”

\-----

Mark stopped by his office before leaving. He didn’t use it often and hadn’t been inside for months since he started working with Heiran. 

But he was looking for something. 

He wondered if it was still around here somewhere. 

Mark shuffled through papers, skimmed over his bookshelf, even checked the wall where his weapons were hung up. It wasn’t until he was on his knees with his arm shoved into the drawer of his desk, did he find it wedged in a corner. 

He pulled out the photograph before leaning back on his heels to look at it. He thought that maybe it would make him feel something about the entire situation, maybe nostalgia or peace. He had pushed Jaebum out of his mind as best he could and for a while he thought he was okay. 

But seeing him with Heiran and finding out that they had a past and that he was tied to Jaebum in more ways than he thought brought everything back. 

It wasn’t nostalgia or anything fond, it was wishful to hope, he knew it. 

Instead it was this disgusting feeling of self-hatred and regret. 

A young Mark Tuan was standing shoulder to shoulder with an equally young Im Jaebum, staring into the camera. 

He stared at it and felt his brows draw together. It had been many years since he looked at the photo, sometimes he forgot it even exisited, and it was only now that he noticed something that felt disorientating about it. He pulled his phone out and flicked through the photos in album until he found one Lucy had taken of herself when he wasn’t paying attention. He held the photo up to his phone and stared between the both of them. 

Lord.

Lucy looked happy, joyful, pure, and innocent. She looked like how a child should. 

His younger self looked soulless, without emotion or any sort of hope of a bright future. Jaebum was no different. They looked like ghosts, staring into the camera hoping someone could see the cry for help behind their gazes. 

He wondered how helpless his younger self would feel if he knew that the only person who would ever decipher the pain would be his future self. 

Mark felt a surge of rare emotion wash over him. He felt so pathetically _sorry_ for his younger self. He was sorry he didn’t protect himself more, that he didn’t try harder for something better, that he allowed himself to feel so trapped and starved for family. 

He was a child and Mark wished he could’ve saved himself. He wished he could hold himself and cry, promising to save him. He wished someone else would see that he needed help, that he just needed love, and took him away. 

He wished for so much. 

It was easy to blame his circumstances and to be fair, his circumstances sucked. But the hardest part of looking back at his past was that he had to admit that he failed himself too. He should’ve fought harder to survive. 

He shouldn’t have given in so easily for the better of two evils. 

For that, he regretted letting himself down. That’s what ended him up here. 

It’s hard to dig up parts of your past, it’s not just reliving pain but it’s the fear of looking back at something and seeing things differently than you did all this time before. 

Looking back and realizing that something you hated was a little bit your fault. 

That something you loved wasn’t that perfect. 

That the people you held dear were a little bit evil. 

That how you self-victimized more than you should’ve. 

That you were just as responsible as the bad guys.

Those realities hurt more than the actual trauma you're avoiding. 

Mark closed his eyes and swallowed deeply. 

He really needed to sleep.

\-----

He really needed to sleep.

That much was clear. 

But somehow, despite having no real need to, he found himself on Heiran’s doorstep, knocking on the door. 

It didn't take long before Heiran finally opened up and peered up at him. She took one long look at his face and sighed, “I guess we’ve both had a shit day, huh?”

He knew he should’ve asked her to elaborate but he didn’t. He just stepped inside and followed her to the couch. Raising a brow, he looked at the coffee table that would normally be spotless except for the little glass bowl filled with fake green apples and an array of carefully curated coffee table books. It was now littered with crumpled tissues and junk food wrappers. 

“Jesus, did someone break up with you?” He muttered, sitting on the couch. 

She rolled her eyes and dropped down next to him. “Yes. My employer.”

He shot his eyes to her just as she stretched her legs out, worming them into his lap, “You got fired?”

She let out a loud laugh, “No. If I got fired, I would’ve burned your headquarters and apartment building down to the ground. I’m suspended with pay.”

Normally, he’d have shifted away or just pretended her legs weren’t on his lap, but he was exhausted. He rested his palm on her calf and slowly slid it up and down her skin. Heiran shivered under his firm touch, watching lazily as his tattooed hand managed to wrap around her leg.

“That doesn’t sound that bad.” He mentioned. 

She tugged the blanket further up to her chin, “Both SmartLogic and Samsung terminated their contracts with us. I just lost the biggest merger ever. Apparently there’s going to be an internal investigation, probably to make sure I didn’t do anything sketchy to blow the deal."

“Oh…that does sound bad.” He mused.

She dug her heel into his thigh to make him wince and laugh. “I can’t believe I can’t go to work and my shitty ex is back. This is truly my worst nightmare.”

“Have you spoken to him?” He asked softly.

Heiran felt lulled by the methodic passing of his palms. She wished he’d touch her more, it always made her feel so good. “The night at your apartment.”

“What the fuck?” He asked, sitting up. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

She shrugged, “I answered my phone by accident and he didn’t say anything important. Just that he loved me, was going to prove it, blah blah.”

“How are you not the least bit swayed by him coming back?” Mark asked. "You admit that you used to love him, like a lot. Doesn't it bring feelings back, seeing him?"

She sat up and found herself a lot closer to him. His hand stopped moving and just gripped her calf, his fingers digging into the meat of her skin. “Because I don’t love him anymore. I can never forgive him for how low I felt when he left. How alone I felt. I didn’t have any family, Mark. Yugyeom and Lucy were all I had. So having him in my life meant the world; he was my family and then he left. Everyone leaves me. I won’t forgive him.”

“Okay.” He whispered, staring into her eyes as she leaned closer. He felt like he had an opportunity to say that he wouldn't leave her, but he wasn't sure he could keep that promise, “I won’t ask anymore.”

Her lips quirked, “Why did you come, Mark?”

“What do you mean?” He played dumb.

She gave him a knowing look, “I’ve been at home all day and didn’t call you to come here. So why did you come?”

He reached out, running a hand through her hair making sure his blunt nails dragged against her scalp. When her eyes fluttered and her lips parted in a silent moan at the feeling he felt the heaviness of today begin to evaporate, “Today sucked.”

She hummed, swaying slightly before forcing her eyes open, “What happened?”

“Nothing really. Just…bad thoughts.” He said simply. He hit his emotional quota for today and didn’t have the energy to even begin telling her what those thoughts were. He just wanted to be around her. 

She knew he was avoiding the honest answer, “I’m sorry about that.”

“Better now.” He accidentally let slip in a whisper. 

But instead of looking surprised or condescending, she just smiled loosely with the kind of bonelessness that people felt after a full body massage. Mark always made sense to her, even when he spoke in puzzles. The moments when he'd let a vulnerability or honest thoughts seep through, she'd be left in awe of it, “Yeah?”

He just made a sound, his eyes flittering over her face, soaking her in, “I know how much you love your job. I’m sorry you were suspended.”

“I know you are.” She mumbled. He was probably apologizing less because he felt bad for her and more because he felt bad for his role in what got her suspended. She knew he meant it too.

He sighed, "I think DS's allies are planning something. I'm reaching out to some contacts to see if they've heard anything, that way I'll know what we're up against. I don't think Jaebum will be much help with intel." 

She nodded distractedly. He always told her what he was doing in an attempt to keep her in the loop, but it had started going over her head. She just trusted he knew what he was doing, “Mark?”

“Hmm?” 

“What does 'baobei' mean?” 

He froze, his fingers stilling in her hair, “What?”

“Baobei. I was just reflecting on the last few weeks and realized that you called me that before. I don’t know what it means though. Don’t know how to spell it either. Tried to dictate it on my phone and it wouldn’t register it.” She asked.

His lips twitched and a laugh escaped him. Her eyes lit up at the sound, awestruck of the way he looked with a pure smile curling up her lips, “Fancy businesswoman like you doesn’t know basic Mandarin?”

“Shut up. What does it mean?” She asked again. "It's obviously a nickname. Is it a good one or are you making fun of me?"

He grinned and slipped his hand out of her hair and gently tapped her on the forehead, “Use your brain, you have the free time.”

She pouted, and grabbed his wrist before shaking him, “Come on, just tell me.”

“Sorry, baobei, you need to work for it.” He teased. 

She groaned and dropped his arm. For the first time in a long time, he found himself feeling happy and at ease. Like nothing mattered and everything made sense. His brain was tired and he was so glad he was with her right now because he never felt like he had to think too hard about what he was doing. He didn't have to worry about her calculating his moves and trying to read him.

Somehow she could be both the most complex and the simplest relationship he ever had with a person. But the moments where they were simple felt golden.

In her presence existed a little void where he could just be. He was meant to protect her, but he felt safe with her.

It was a feeling that he spent his whole life in desperate search of. It led him to dark places but for the first time, he found himself somewhere bright.

He reached out, cupping her cheek so that his fingers brushed against her neck and his thumb pressed into the flush of her cheek, “You worked for everything in your life, can’t you work for me a little?”

Her breath caught at his touch. His hands were all over her today and it felt overwhelming, like she couldn’t properly breathe, her sighs coming in short puffs. It all felt so good, the heat of his skin, the knowledge of when to touch her lightly, and when to apply pressure. It made her a little delirious. And her eyes couldn't stray from his. 

Her skin felt hot and his cologne was filtering through her body. His touch held this delicious balance of commanding her and letting her lead. If she pulled away, he'd back off, if she stayed in his touch, he'd bring her in closer. 

The last time someone was so physical with her, well, the last time was Jaebum. 

But this felt different.

Fuck, Mark always felt different. 

“You're working for me.” She mumbled. 

His smile grew and his voice stayed low, “You’re always in charge, though. Wanna make you work for it this time.”

What the fuck were they talking about again?

“Mom?”

Heiran took a sharp breath and leaned away from him before turning to Lucy who was standing by the staircase, peeking at them through the railings. 

“Yeah, baby?” Her voice was raspy and breathless. 

Lucy rubbed her eyes, “I can’t sleep. Can you tuck me in again?”

Heiran nodded and cast Mark a look before pulling her legs off him, “Coming, sunshine. Go get in bed.”

Lucy scurried away and Heiran found Mark watching her carefully. She wondered what he thought about when he looked at her. 

“Are you feeling better?” She asked. 

He nodded slowly, “I think so. You?”

“Yeah. Same."

“Alright, I'll lock up on my way out. G’night, duchess.” 

She blinked at him and smiled slightly, poking his nose, “Goodnight, baobei.”

Mark laughed.

And it was nice.

\-----

When Heiran opened her door the next morning and found Jaebum parked outside her gate, she pulled out a golf club and opened the gates before storming barefoot to her driveway. She glared at him wielding the club menacingly as he killed the engine.

“How fucking dare you.” She barked. “My home? You came here?”

He got out of his expensive car and held his hands out, moving slowly, “I’m sorry, Seo. But lord, put that thing down. I just want to talk.”

“Don’t you ever listen to me?” She snapped, “You just do whatever you want.”

“Please. Before you bash my headlights in. I wanted to talk.” He pressed.

She narrowed her eyes, “You said what you needed, I don't want to hear anything else.”

“Don’t you have questions? We barely got to talk before and I just want to make sure you know everything you need to.”

“My only question is if I can destroy your window before you get in your car.” She barked. 

His hands dropped to his side and his head hung, the pain was clear on his face and it made her arms fall slack. She used to see that look on him sometimes, it always gutted her because Jaebum was nothing but confident, happy, light-hearted when he was with her. 

Nothing ever upset him or bothered him, so when those moments slipped out, it’d crush her heart.

“I’m sorry.” He whispered. He stepped back, reaching for the door handle when she spoke up. 

“You won’t answer the questions I want to ask you, though.” She said. 

He slipped his hands into his pockets, “I know and I still can’t but there are others, I know you, all you do is think.”

“What are you doing, Jaebum?” It was a single question layered with so many others. 

He gave her a weak smile, “I’m trying to find an excuse to talk to you again.”

“You had two men try to drag me off in front of my office.” She deadpanned. 

He winced, taking measured steps away from his car and closer to her house. He wanted her away from swinging distance of his ride home. “They weren’t supposed to use force, I just wanted them to bring you to me to talk to you but Mark got involved before I could.”

She bet that if Mark was here, he’d have been so smug knowing he got in the way of something Jaebum wanted to do.

“What about the police station? Those missing children posters?”

“I might have some dirty cops on my payroll but not enough to protect myself from a full-on investigation. I did it to scare you so that you wouldn't go to the police, never to hurt you. Lucy was safe.”

“God, do you hear yourself, Jaebum? You intentionally wanted to scare me. I’m supposed to be okay with that?” She hissed. “You knew who I was and you still wanted to do this to me and now I’m in even more shit when you could’ve just clarified to everyone that I wasn’t responsible.”

Jaebum flinched, “I have no proof to show them other than the fact that I knew you because we dated back when I was a gunrunner. That’s not exactly going to work in either of our favours.”

“You were always good with excuses.” She muttered.

Jaebum looked at his feet and shifted, “I’ll protect you. I swear.”

“I have Mark.” She said softly, looking off to the gates that slowly opened. His eyes followed hers, noting that unlike when he had to buzz in to be let in, Mark was let in without needing permission. "Mark protects me. He keeps me and Lucy safe. I trust him.”

He watched him drive in, “I could protect you better, Seo.”

“Because you run DS? My father runs a gang bigger than yours.” She sniped, “Mark is all I need. He’s all I want right now.”

The weight of her word hung heavily in his ears, “I could protect you better because I love you.”

 _And Mark doesn’t._ She heard the subtext loud and clear.

“That’s not enough.” She said. “Not anymore.”

He looked determined and held her gaze, “I’ll do whatever it takes, Seo.”

\-----

When Mark pulled into Heiran’s parking lot, the first thing he recognized was Jaebum’s car. Then he spotted Heiran and Jaebum talking in front of the door of her house. 

His grip tightened around the steering wheel when he parked next to Jaebum’s car. They glanced at him and Heiran sent him a small smile before facing Jaebum who was still watching him. 

“Fucker.” Mark grumbled under his breath as he got out of the car. 

It was going to be a big problem for him if Jaebum was going to start popping up at Heiran’s house whenever he wanted. 

He stood behind Jaebum’s car, staring at it dubiously and the way it was parked in her driveway like it belonged there. Like he could drive into people’s lives and force himself into a spot.

He glanced up at the two of them and found them facing away from him. He should be storming up there and making sure that Jaebum wasn’t crossing any line but first thing’s first.

Pulling his keys out, Mark walked around the vehicle and dug the teeth of his keys into the glossy finish. He took long steps forward, smiling when his keys drew a deep line into the car, scraping the paint off and scarring the body of what looked like a hundred thousand dollar ride.

It was petty. Something rebel teenage kids would do.

But fuck Im Jaebum. 


	22. Twentysecond

A few weeks had passed since Heiran was suspended from work and she had only just begun utilizing the new free time to do things for herself instead of moping around. 

The first few days she had spent joining Mark while he dropped off Lucy and laying in bed, depressed until it was time to pick her up from school. It wasn’t the healthiest pattern but this was a woman who went from working 50 to 60 hours a week, to 0 hours a week. It took a lot of adjusting. 

She sighed as she sunk further into the bubbles and steaming water laced with essential oils. The heat melted the tension in her muscles and she could feel the tightness in her body soften. She closed her eyes, enjoying the smell of rose oils and reached for the glass of wine she poured for herself. 

Slowly opening her eyes, she stared at the candle she lit to set the mood. It was the first time she had used it and the entire day would’ve been more relaxing if it didn’t smell so bad. It was too strong and fragrant, it was making her head hurt. She took a deep breath and considered if it was worth getting out of the world’s most comfortable bath just to blow it out.

“Duchess? Where are you?” Mark voice suddenly called out from downstairs.

Sitting up a little, she took a big gulp of her drink, “I’m up here.”

She could hear his footsteps come up the stairs before they walked into her bedroom. “Where?”

“In here.” She called lazily.

He followed the sound and she could see his shadow linger outside the bathroom door before he knocked. Heiran laughed, “Come in.”

Mark opened the door before freezing. His eyes widened when he took in the sight of Heiran glistening under the golden glow of the candles. Her hair was piled up in a bun with a few damp strands stuck to the back of her neck. 

“O-Oh.” His eyes flickered up to the ceiling, “Sorry, I thought you said I could come in. I’ll wait in the kitchen.”

She snickered, “I did say that. Come in.”

“You’re in the bath.” He said, surprised. 

“I know. I’m also covered with bubbles so you can’t really see much. What did you want?”

He held out a stack of envelopes, “Eun wanted me to pass these along. Also, she looked like she was on the brink of tears. I guess she misses you or something.”

“You can put them on the counter. I’ll look through them later.” She said, waving her hand.

He tensed at the sound of water sloshing, “That’s it, I just wanted to check-in. I’ll head out, call me if you need som—“

“Sit down.”

His brow twitched at her command, “You’re in the bath and I have no reason to be here.”

“Stay.” She said simply. 

He glanced at her wearily before walking to the counter, “God that candle smells awful.”

Heiran smiled looking pleased like she knew a secret. “Blow it out then.”

He leaned over and blew at the small flame before dropping down next to the tub, his back facing her. She grinned and rested her arms on the edge of the tub to peer at the side of his face, “You’re not going to look at me?”

“You’re naked.” He grumbled jaw tensed.

She leaned close and bumped her nose against his cheek playfully, “You can’t see anything with all the bubbles.”

“But you’re still _naked._ ” He hissed. 

She laughed. “How was your day?”

His face was still set in a scowl, “Better now that you spend your days at home. Did you hear back from work yet?”

“No.” Her voice was quiet and when he finally forced himself to look over at her. Her eyes were downcast and vacant of the previous mirth. He wanted to push away the wet pieces of hair that clung to her but that would require having to touch her. 

“Suspension is a good look on you.”

Her eyes flickered to meet his and a small smile quirked up her lips when she saw amusement staring back at her, “You think? This is the first time I’ve actually allowed myself to enjoy not having to work.”

“It’s fun not being busy, right?” He said, looking away from her again.

She narrowed her eyes and leaned close to bump her nose up against him once more, “You would go insane if you couldn’t work. Newsflash, you’re just as much of a workaholic as I am.”

Fuck. 

Fuck. 

Fuck.

He was so fucked.

She smelled so good now that the candle was out. Like roses and expensive fragrance. He could feel the steam floating off of the water which meant that her skin was probably warm and dewy too. 

He hated it so much. 

He hated that she looked so powerful just lounging in water. 

He hated that she was laughing at him with her eyes.

And what he hated most of all was that he could imagine this day. He could envision coming home, tired and exhausted, and finding her relaxing here. He could see himself not needing to hesitate by the door and just wandering in, letting her ask him about his day while he stripped off his clothes in front of her. 

And he would see him climbing in with her, groaning at the feeling of the warm water lapping at him before she slid over to him, resting against his chest. His eyes already felt heavy just fantasizing about how it would feel so have so much of her skin on him. Soft, warm, welcoming. Ah, shit.

“Mark. You’re freaking me out. Why do you keep spacing?”

He snapped out of his trance and quickly looked at her in acknowledgment, hoping his gaze didn’t linger too much on her, “I’m not a workaholic, it’s just that my job is more around-the-clock.”

“Trust me, as someone who used to use the same excuse, your job isn’t around-the-clock. _You_ are around-the-clock, your job is just what you do with your time.” She quipped. 

He glossed over her comment and felt his brows furrow, he really didn’t want to ruin her good mood but, “Has Jaebum tried contacting you lately?”

“I was about to ask you the same thing.” She mumbled, “Your eyebrows scrunched up and it’s like my brain just jumped to him.”

He would’ve appreciated the sentiment if Jaebum’s presence didn’t bother him so much. “Well?”

“No.” She admitted, “He hasn’t contacted me since he came to my house. It’s sort of worrying me. He seemed so adamant to make it up to me and fix everything. Like he was going to do something drastic, so him suddenly going silent is unnerving.”

She had a point, although Mark’s lips hitched at the memory of a very poignant text he received from DS after he had seen the state of his car. 

**From: UNKNOWN**

**Fuck. Off.**

“Maybe he just took the hint and is leaving you alone. He’s typically persistent but people are more insecure around their exes.”

She scoffed, “You overestimate how much he claims he still loves me.”

“Jaebum doesn’t beg.” Mark said quietly, “He doesn’t plead, he doesn’t chase after something that doesn’t want him, he doesn’t ask. But he does for you.”

Heiran just stared at Mark, her heart churning, “Why does it sound like you _want_ me to give him a chance and take him back?"

“I don’t. I swear, I don’t. But you should just know that the Jaebum that showed up in front of you isn’t the same Jaebum that runs DS. So maybe he does really love you and acts differently because of it which means I can’t really predict what he’s going to do.” He explained. 

Heiran reached out and curled a sopping hand into the shoulder of his jacket and tugged on it, “What would you do? If it was you?”

“If Jaebum confessed his love to me? Hmm, not sure, never really thought about it.” He quipped dryly, finally forcing his gaze to properly lock into hers. 

She glared, flicking water at him so that he’d flinch away with a smile, “Very funny. No, I mean, what would you do if you were Jaebum?”

Oh, hell. 

Was she seriously asking him what he’d do if he was her ex who was madly in love with her and wanted to win her back? How was that a fair question? How could she allow him to imagine what he would be like as her boyfriend?

“I don’t know, duchess. I’ve never really been in love before. But if someone meant that much to me, I wouldn’t have lost them in the first place.”

Heiran gulped as she stared, eyes locked, at Mark, his gaze a slow kindling fire. He probably wouldn’t leave his girlfriend if the relationship was that serious and he certainly wouldn’t be in a serious relationship unless he knew the girl he was with was ride or die. He might’ve still hid the truth at first but when push came to shove, she bet he’d come clean and deal with the consequences. 

He wouldn’t run away, not from her, not from Lucy. 

He’d come up with a plan to make sure his gang didn’t come after her, he’d apologize over and over again for the lies and no matter what she'd plead, he’d never leave her, not until she was safe. Mark was a lot of things, but he wouldn’t be a coward in the face of someone he loved. He’d probably show up to every fight they’d have, take every verbal spar and angry word if it meant fighting for—

What was she even talking about? 

There was no way she was sitting here daydreaming about Mark’s hypothetical emotional capacity in a relationship. 

“You good?” Mark mumbled, watching her eyes glaze over in a trance. 

She blinked quickly before clearing her throat, “Yeah. My hands are getting pruny though. I think it’s time for me to get out.” 

His brow raised challengingly, “So? Get out.”

“Umm…can you leave?” She muttered.

He smirked, leaning close, “You’re the one who asked me to stay. What happened to all that boldness about being naked in the same room as me?”

“I’ll do it. I’ll stand up right now, you’re the one who wouldn’t be able to handle it.” She challenged back.

She was probably right. 

But he just smiled as he stood, “You smell good. Throw that candle out.”

\-----

He should’ve known that everything was too calm.

When he wasn’t taking care of minor duties that had more to do with him intimidating people rather than killing them, he was spending time with Heiran. But it wasn’t like before. 

It wasn’t loitering around her office while she worked, only stopping by to check-in or relay a message. It was dropping Lucy off and letting Heiran convince him to go to lunch with her or stopping by and being dragged into a reality tv marathon with her legs tossed over his thighs. They spent time hanging out, he had no reason to be with her other than because she wanted his company and he was willing to offer it. 

It was dangerous. 

Because he was starting to feel like a friend to her. 

So perhaps today was the rude awakening that he had coming.

_“Come by my office at noon.”_

That’s the voicemail he got from his Boss when he was too busy trying to convince Heiran that she _didn’t_ need to buy a third patio swing.

When he strolled into the headquarters the silence was the first red flag. No one was in sight, everyone must’ve been sent home which was uncommon for GOT7. There was always someone around doing something. Not even Jinyoung was in.

Mark pursed his lips, shooting Jinyoung a text, asking what happened, and got a reply shortly after. 

**From: Jinyoung**

**Idk, Boss told us to work from home.**

Mark grumbled, and moved to his Boss’s office, knocking sharply. 

Even his assistant was gone. 

“Come in.”

Mark shoved the door open and stepped in. He immediately recognized the back of Jaebum’s head. He was seat across from his Boss who had his fists resting against his desk. 

He gripped his gun, ready to whip it out, “What’s he doing here?”

“At ease. He requested we meet, I agreed. I’m sure introductions aren’t in order, so please, take a seat. We have much to discuss.” His Boss summoned. 

Mark’s jaw was still tense as he walked to the leather chair, sitting down and refusing to meet Jaebum’s gaze, even when he saw him turn to him in his peripheral. “What’s happening?”

“DS has come to me with a proposition.” His Boss explained. 

There was something about the softness in his voice that set Mark on edge, “I’m sure he’ll handle the rejection well.”

“Actually, I’m considering it.” 

Mark stared at his Boss in shock, “You’re not serious. He’s the enemy.”

“Trust me, that fact isn’t lost on me. But I think, with the cops circling us and DS’s allies running rouge, joining forces might help keep all of us alive and not behind bars.” He reasoned. 

Mark felt his fingers dig into the leather of the armrests. Nothing Jaebum offered would be anything but to benefit himself. He already knew he was going to hate whatever ‘proposition’ Jaebum had.

“I’m going to marry Heiran.”

Ha.

It almost sounded like Jaebum just said that he was going to marr—

“I’ll kill you.”

The threat left Mark’s mouth so easily and so quickly that he almost sounded like he commenting on the weather if not for the animalistic growl it came out as. He felt rage so strong that instead of yelling, throwing things, and pulling out his gun, Mark was deathly still, his face blank, not for lack of caring but because he couldn’t even decide how he felt. 

Incredulous. Angry. Furious. Regret. Betrayal. Defensive. Jealous. Disbelief. 

“Mark.” His Boss scolded. “This isn’t your decision to make.”

He had to hold back. He promised Heiran not to tell her father that Jaebum was an ex, but he so badly wanted to throw it back in his face. He was glad his Boss was there or else there would be no one to stop him from flaying Jaebum’s skin. “He’s tried to kill her, sir. Kidnapped her and made threats against her kid.”

“You’re the one who said that those weren’t real threats. That you didn’t think Jaebum was after revenge.” Boss pointed out.

Jaebum tilted his head, calmly watching the way Mark’s face twisted at his own words being thrown at him. Why it almost sounded like Mark had tried defending him.

“Well this is it! This is what he was after. Marrying your daughter. He wants leverage and he’s going to use her.” Mark barked. 

His Boss sighed, “Look, it’s clearly not ideal, but it would help in a major way. This marriage forces DS to align with us. It’ll force his allies to stand down because they can’t go after their leader’s wife. And together we can evade the cops.”

“This was his idea. He’s clearly planning something. He’ll try to turn her against you or use her to get to you and GOT7.” Mark didn’t even hear his voice wavering. “You can’t do this to her.”

“Obviously, I’m not going to force her.” Jaebum said. 

Mark clenched his jaw, “Shut up.”

“I’ll lay out my proposition and if she agrees. We’ll get married.” Jaebum stated. 

Mark blinked at him before a relieved laugh escaped him, “Oh. That’s your plan? In that case, go for it. Heiran fucking hates you. You think she’d even hesitate for a second before saying no to your plan?”

“Lucy.” His Boss finally spoke. “He told me how she was willing to die for her daughter when she was kidnapped. If DS can promise Lucy’s safety, I think she’ll say yes.”

Mark’s throat dried, “You can’t use her kid just to get her to marry you. You want her to be your wife? Go ask her out, try to have a relationship, try not to fuck it up by being the world’s most colossal idiot, and then ask her to marry you. But don't fucking do it like this. She doesn’t deserve this.”

“Easy.” Jaebum threatened, his calmness washing over into a growing rage, “You don’t know what’s best for her.”

Mark shook his head, “No. You’re forcing her to give up her whole life because you’ll never let her divorce you because the minute she does, you’ll send the cops and your allies after her. I’d rather keep protecting her.”

“That’s what you’re calling it? Letting her get taken? That was you protecting her?” Jaebum sneered. 

Mark launched out of his chair, grabbing Jaebum by the collar to lift him out of his seat, “Keep going, I’ve been itching for a reason to carve your face up like I did to your car.”

“That’s enough!” His Boss boomed. 

Mark considered getting at least one swing in, but instead pulled Jaebum close and whispered so his Boss couldn’t hear, “You’ll break her heart again. I’m going to kill you before I let that happen.” 

He let go of him, ignoring the look Jaebum was giving him. His Boss sighed, “I hate this just as much as you do. This is the last thing I ever wanted, but things are getting out of hand and the only way any of us are going to survive is to have a temporary alliance. If Heiran agrees, we’ll set a divorce date in advance. And then she’ll leave him with no consequences.”

“She’ll never say yes.” Mark hissed. 

His Boss rubbed his head, “We’ll have to see for ourselves.”

“What do you mean?”

A little ding echoed in the room and he sighed, “I sent word to her, asked her to come by. She’s here now, we’ll see what she says.”

Mark panicked. He thought he’d have enough time to talk to her himself and convince her that she didn’t need to do this in order to be safe. That he’d do everything and anything to make sure that she stayed out of her jail and she and her kid stayed alive. 

“I’ll escort her in.” Mark said quickly before rushing out of the room. 

Jaebum frowned, watching him disappear before turning to his enemy while pointing to where Mark vanished to, “You know that isn’t normal.”

“Shut up.” He muttered. 

Jaebum shook his head, “He threatened to kill me over a marriage.”

The Boss snarled, “You don’t get to talk about him.”

“You’re not the least bit concerned about the two of them?” Jaebum mused.

For the first time since he’s known the man, the leader of GOT7 looked confused like the thought had never crossed his mind, “Why would I have any reason to be concerned about them?”

Jaebum tilted his head before smiling, “You’re right, she’s going to be my wife soon, anyways.”

\-----

He ran through the headquarters, his mind racing as headed to the main doors to find Heiran. He couldn’t explain the frantic urgency that rushed through him. He knew that she wouldn’t say yes, in fact, she might try strangling Jaebum when she hears the offer. 

But there was still something choking him. 

He threw the doors open and ran down the stairs just as Heiran stepped out of her car, shutting in behind her. “Hey, what’s going on? Why do I have to be here?”

Mark ignored her question and stumbled in front of her, hands cupping her cheeks and pulling her to him, much to her surprise, “Say no.”

“W-What?” She whispered, eyes wide. 

He was out of breath and desperate, leaning his head against hers, “They’re going to offer you something, they’ll make it sound reasonable like it’s the only option you have, but I swear, it’s not. No matter how convincing they are, please say no. _Please_.”

“Mark, you’re not making sense, are you okay?” She mumbled, her eyes darting across his face worriedly. 

Her hand wrapped around his wrist but didn’t try to pull his touch away. He didn’t realize he was shaking, “I promise I’ll be good to you. I’ll sleep in my car outside your house, I’ll never take my eyes off of you. You and Lucy will be safe, fuck, I’ll homeschool her if you want. Just say no.”

“You’re freaking me out.” She said softly before sliding her hand up his wrist and lacing her fingers with his and pulling his hand away. “Let’s just go in. I’m sure whatever you’re panicking about won’t be that bad.”

\-----

If she was already going to go to jail for money laundering, maybe she should just add murder to the list of crimes. 

Because she was certainly going to kill Im Jaebum. 

“Do you _hear_ yourself?” She hissed, “You’re honestly standing in front of me, asking for marriage. You. My e—enemy. Someone who’s threatened my life. I’m supposed to trust you?” 

The anger radiating off of her now was far tamer than when Jaebum had first laid down the proposition. She had actually tried lunging at him with a scream. She might've drawn blood too if Mark hadn’t grabbed her by the waist, mumbling calming reassurances against her ear, promising that he’d let her attack him later.

Her father had been silent throughout the entire thing and it just made her nervous, she couldn’t be angry at him because she was too occupied with making sure that she didn’t let it slip that she and Jaebum were well acquainted with each other. It was evident that Jaebum was using the fact that her father was none the wiser to his advantage.

“I’m only doing this to ensure all of our safety.” Jaebum said smoothly. 

She scoffed, “You’re the reason my safety was jeopardized in the first place.”

“I know this isn’t ideal for any of us—“

Mark snorted but stayed silent, rolling his eyes in a way that Heiran understood. It was probably ideal for Jaebum, to marry his ex he was still in love with.

Jaebum shot him a glare, “As I was saying, I know it’s not ideal, but your father can back me up when I say that since there aren’t any laws governing the underground, we operate on more mutual understandings. One of those understandings is that spouses are off-limits. It’ll protect you and Lucy. My allies will have no choice but to stop coming after you. It’ll also force GOT7 to cooperate and come up with a strategy to shake the cops off.”

“GOT7 was your rival a few weeks ago and now you want to go all kumbaya and work together?” She asked incredulously. 

Jaebum shot her father a scalding look, “I’d rather shoot myself, but the police have an entire taskforce set up to take us down, I’m sure you’re very familiar with the police.”

Heiran stiffened at the hint at Yugyeom, “And?”

“If GOT7 and DS are at each other’s throats, it'll start a full-on war. It would bring attention and make it easier for the cops to track us down. Right now saving our own asses is more important than getting revenge.” He explained. 

Her brow twitched, “Why can’t I marry Mark or something?”

Mark’s jaw was so tight that he was sure he was going to crack his teeth. He tried to keep his composure so that no one would know how those words fucked him up. Jaebum glanced in his direction but he refused to acknowledge it. 

“Because the union needs to be between our two gangs and even if it wasn't, Mark isn’t high enough on the pecking order, his wife would be a liability, but the leader's wife would be untouchable.”

She looked away, pissed, and stared at her father, “Don’t you want to say something? Your daughter is being married off as a peace treaty. Your _only_ daughter.”

“Pumpkin.” He said softly, “I hate this more than I can fathom, but there are serious threats being spread by his allies against you. Threats that Mark can’t singlehandedly protect you from. They want you dead by the end of the month. There are too many. We’re desperate and the only way to ensure your safety is to call a truce which is in the form of this marriage.”

“You can say no.” Mark interrupted, “They won’t marry you off against your will. We’ll come up with an alternative if you don’t want to do this.”

She chewed her lip as she looked at Mark. He tried to smile reassuringly but she knew it was weak.

Jaebum cleared his throat, “He’s right, but if you say yes, it…it’ll be on paper. I won’t force you to live with me or share a bed. You won't be giving up that much. But it’s the best option, Seo.”

She stared at him, wishing she could just spit out the irony of all of this. They broke up because he acted like commitment and marriage was too much responsibility for him with Lucy in the picture. Then he claimed that it was because if anyone from his gang found out they were together even after his assignment was over, she’d be a target.

And now he was saying that marrying her was the only way to avoid being a target. 

She wanted to tell him that if he had just come clean earlier, they probably would’ve already been married. “Legally you’ll have so much fucking power over me if we were married. I don’t want that. That makes me uncomfortable. I don’t want to be your property.”

“You won’t be.” His voice came out softer than intended and Mark resisted the urge to punch him. “It’ll just be on paper, I won’t ask anything else of you, maybe attend a meeting here and there. That’s it.”

She looked away, "This is insane."

“Think about Lucy.”

She froze, her heart thudding. “Wh—“

“People will just assume she’s my kid. She’ll be off-limits too. No one would even look at her.” He said softly. 

Mark felt his anger overflow, “Except that she’s _not_ your kid.”

“She’s not yours either." Jaebum fired back.

“Okay.”

Silence shot out around the room, no one dared to move as everyone turned to Heiran, unsure if they heard her correctly. 

It was Mark who rasped out the question everyone was asking in their heads, “Okay what?”

“I’ll marry him.” Her voice was void, detached, like a robot. Emotion was wiped clean off her face and her gaze was planted off to the side, away from the three men who wanted too much from her.

“No.” Mark challenged, his stare penetrating.

She closed her eyes, “Mark.”

“You realize what he’s asking, right? There’s no end date, he might not ever let you divorce him. You’ll be his wife forever. The wife of a crime lord.” His voice cracked but he pushed past it. "It's not worth it."

She opened her eyes but instead of looking at him, she looked at the other two men who managed to bring nothing but pain into her life, “I’ve long given up on wanting a real marriage. Never had a good example of it growing up and failed relationships taught me that it’ll never be my future. This is nothing more than a business contract. We’ll live our same separate lives except now everyone will know we’re married. I’ll treat it like that as long as our safety is as good as guaranteed.”

Mark just stared hopelessly at her. How could she have said yes? 

Jaebum smiled, moving towards her, “Okay, I can guarantee that. I promise this won’t be as bad you’re thinking it’ll be.”

“I have one condition. Non-negotiable.” She said firmly, staring him down.

Jaebum nodded, “Anything, Seo.”

“I want Mark to stay.” She said, lifting her head.

Jaebum’s smile shrank as he stared back at her. She wondered what her father thought of the scene unfolding in front of him, “Mark?”

“He keeps looking after me and Lucy. He keeps doing everything he’s been doing. You don’t get to order him around or treat him like he’s one of your minions. He still works for me and GOT7 and this sham of a marriage won’t affect his role in guarding me.” 

Her father raised a brow, “But with the marriage, Mark won’t really have anything to protect you from.”

She kept her eyes on Jaebum, “I don’t care.”

Jaebum’s brows knotted together as his eyes flickered through hers, trying to read her like he used to all those years ago. But time had changed Heiran, she wasn’t easy to read if you didn’t take the time to know who she had become. 

“Fine.” He relented. 

Her father approached the two of them, resting his hand on her shoulder, grateful that she didn’t shake him off, “I know this is a big sacrifice you’re making. You’re doing it for you and your daughter but it’s helping all of us, even though I know that you don’t want to. You are a better person than all of us.”

She said nothing, looking past Jaebum and to Mark. 

“The sooner we finalize this, the better. You two should go to the courthouse tomorrow, get the license.” Her father gently suggested. 

“Whatever.” Heiran muttered, “Just text me or Mark and we’ll be there.”

Before anyone could say anything, she walked past them, grabbing Mark’s elbow and dragged him out of the room.

“Take me home,” she said with a quivering voice when they were out, “take me home before I lose it.”

\-----

“I’m sorry.” She said after a long silence filled the car. 

He frowned, “Why are you apologizing?”

“You asked me to say no. I didn’t.”

His grip tightened around the wheel, “It was selfish of me to ask. You have to think about Lucy, what’s best for her. Realistically he’s the best way to make sure she’s safe and that no one comes for her.”

“I trust you, you know. I didn’t say yes because I thought you couldn’t keep the two of us safe.”

He softened, “Heiran, you don’t need to convince me of anything. This isn’t about me. I know you trust me, I know it’s not about that.”

She nodded, leaning back against her seat before sighing.

“I feel sorry for my younger self.” She said quietly. 

He glanced over at her, feeling a connection at the sound of a feeling that he had experienced a few weeks earlier, “Why?”

“I used to dream about my marriage. Not the wedding but the marriage. After my parents’ fell apart, I swore that I’d never be like them. I’d marry a wonderful man who actually loved me. Couldn’t live without me. Worshipped me. Would stay with me forever. I’d have an amazing family with him and our kids would be so happy. It would be everything that my parents’ weren’t.” She muttered. “After Jaebum left, I gave up, I was happier without a man. Now I’m in a marriage that’s worse than my mother's.”

He shook his head, “Fuck, I’m so sorry.”

Her face crumpled at the anguish in Mark’s voice, like he knew exactly how much this pained her, “How am I supposed to tell Lucy that the man who walked out on us is back?”

Mark glanced at her from the side of his eye before reaching a hand out to cup her face and brush her tears away, “You don’t. This marriage is on paper only. Your lives won’t change, so she doesn’t need to see him if you don’t want her to.”

She clutched his hand, holding it tightly in her lap as her head hung. He gulped, squeezing her hand trying to lighten the mood as he pulled into her driveway, “You hate him so much you wanted to marry me.”

“Yeah. I did.” She said simply, “I would’ve married you in a heartbeat over anyone else.”

Shit. Shit. Shit. 

She shouldn’t be saying stuff like that in front of him.

Mark tried to swallow the rock down his throat, “I’ll drop Lucy off.”

She nodded tiredly, staring forlornly out the window at her house. He sighed and tugged on her hand until she looked at him, “It’ll be okay. I promise, I’ll be here. I won’t ever let anything happen to you.”

\-----

Heiran sat up with a start when the alarms blared in her house in the middle of the night. 

Panicked, she checked her clock seeing that it was well past midnight before climbing out of bed and walking on her tiptoes. Her heart was racing as she peeked out her door, looking both ways before stepping into the hallway and cautiously looking over the railing.

She let out a breath when Mark stood by her doorway, back turned to her as he typed in her passcode to stop the alarms. With the door open, she could hear the rain thundering on her roof and glistening over his jacket. 

Making sure Lucy was still asleep, she came back to the stairs, climbing down halfway to see Mark standing in her foyer, staring off in a trance. “Mark?”

He snapped his gaze to hers and his shoulders sunk. He had never entered her house without calling beforehand, especially in the middle of the night. Concern flashed over her face as her mind ticked through the endless list of reasons he’d be here. None of them were good.

“What’s wrong?”

He shook his head, kicking his shoes off and slipping his jacket down his shoulders, tossing it on her couch, “I always drive by around this time to check on the house.”

She never knew that. 

“You don’t typically come in, setting off the alarms, though.” She mused, her voice soft even though Lucy was far enough away that she wouldn’t be awake.

Mark never looked away from her, his gaze dark and heavy in the kind of way that burned her skin and dried her mouth. “Wanted to see you.”

“Why?” She whispered when he came closer, stopping one step lower than where she was standing.

His eyes darted across her face and it revealed a moment of hesitation that she rarely saw on him, “I really don’t fucking want you to marry, Jaebum.”

Her heart raced at the throaty grumble of his voice, her stomach unfurled in anticipation. He was so close she could feel his breath, “I’m still going to be his wife tomorrow.”

“So let me have tonight.”

Her breath was trapped in her throat she stared at his eyes, glossed over, hungry, sad, pleading, and it completely wrecked her. She thought that she’d have more time to figure out what she wanted out of Mark. She had been avoiding and brushing away the attraction that would pull at her around him. She was ignoring the calmness she’d feel next to him or how their relationship had become warmer and more reciprocal over the last few months. It was hard to acknowledge the complex feelings he gave her.

Because he was still a member of GOT7 who was hired to watch over her. 

But she still ached for his company over friends and amiable colleagues.

Now he was an inch away asking her a question that would require her to sort out all of her feelings and wants. 

“Tonight?” She whispered softly. 

He gulped, reaching a hand out to cup her cheek, his fingers drawing soft patterns across her skin. “I can’t be your husband, I can’t be what I want to be for you. But before you become someone else’s wife, please let me spend the night with you.”

He pressed his forehead against hers and she sighed in contentment. Every doubt and fear that the rational part of her brain was screaming, faded. He wasn't asking to sleep in the guest room, she knew that, “Mark.”

“If you say no, I’ll turn around and leave. I’ll come back in the morning, take you to the courthouse and be by your side as long as you need me to be. But if you say yes, I can make tonight so good for you. For us.” He whispered. “Because I can’t fucking keep pretending that I don’t dream about wanting to do this to you every time I’m around you."

“Say it.” She blurted. 

His eyes widened, “What.”

“You—You keep talking in half-sentences and vague descriptions. You want me for tonight? Tell me exactly what you feel. What you want.” She ordered. 

He let out a shuddering breath, weak under her stare, “I like you, duchess. I like you so fucking much, but I can’t do shit about it because I work for your dad and you and Lucy don’t deserve to have a criminal in your life. And I'm not someone who really plans for a life with someone else. I know you don’t want me around long term, you don’t want me to be your boyfriend or your husband, not if you really had a choice. I’m fine with that, I’ll take whatever fucking time I can get with you. Our shit. Me and you? It doesn’t make sense. I don’t get why you make me feel like this and I don’t know what the hell I’m supposed to do with these feelings. It’s never felt like this before but I thought I’d get a hold of it as long as I had time to sort my shit out. But I’m running out of time when I was laying in bed trying to pretend that I was fine with you marrying Jaebum.”

She was positively shaking, “And then?”

“And then I realized I hated the thought of you marrying someone else. Real or not.” He panted, “I kept thinking about how pretty you looked at that bar and how I can’t fucking get the sound of your begging for me, wanting me, out of my head because it felt so damn good to hear you say it. Or how you wear the hell out of those silk shirts and monster heels. Or how you’re the best fucking parent I’ve ever seen and shit you looked so good in that bathtub and I want you so badly it doesn’t even feel real. Fuck, it _hurts_.” 

Her jaw was slack as she took in everything that tumbled out of his mouth, breathing the praise in like it inflated her heart. 

His lip trembled, not because he was going to cry but because he felt out of control, “I was _so_ good at pretending that I felt nothing, that everything I did for you was normal and out of duty but holy shit, I didn’t realize how hard it would be to see you be his wife.”

Her shaking fingers sunk into his hair and his eyes fluttered shut for a second until her voice coaxed them open, “I don’t know what I want.”

“That’s okay.” He muttered, “I’m barely figuring out what I want. I have a lot of baggage and messy shit that I can’t put you through. And we both know even if we really wanted it, a future isn’t sustainable, not with us.”

“You don’t know that.” She whispered, her eyes watery. 

He tried to smile, “I do. Because I wouldn’t ever want to do that to you.”

“But just tonight?” She asked softly. 

He gulped and nodded, “I know what I want for tonight. If you want the same—if you want me, I can be yours tonight. And then tomorrow we can deal with real life. We’ll never have to revisit tonight.”

She opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. 

“But I need you to know…” He started, cutting her off, “Tonight, even if it’s just one night, is not the same as it was with Yeonhee. This isn’t me wanting meaningless sex. If that’s not want you want, I need to know now. This might be a one-time thing, but it’s going to mean something.”

She gulped at the heaviness at the implication. He wasn’t going to give either of them an easy out. They weren’t going to wake up and make excuses about what was about to happen. 

Instead of burning her brain out any further, she slid her hand down the side of his head, tucking under his jaw and around the side of his neck before dragging him towards her. Mark took in a sharp breath and let himself be led into her as their noses brushed against each other. 

After weeks of playing a silent game where they tested each other with innocent touches, meaningful words, and a magnetic pull, they finally faced the underlying tension head-on. Suddenly, the feelings they perfected at ignoring were shoved in front of them, forcing them to address it. 

And while it would’ve been better than he just stayed at his apartment and rot in his own angst, he was so fucking glad he didn’t.

When the sun rose and gold painted across the city, they’d go back to being a bodyguard and an assignment. An employer and employee. Two strangers trying to be friends. They’d be normal. 

But tonight, they would indulge in every thought they’d push away. 

The instant her mouth sunk into his, she felt her entire body electrify. The groan that escaped his lips shot through her veins and her other hand scrambled to dig into his shoulder and pull him impossibly close. His arms bound around her waist, hugging her against him as she sighed and swayed against his mouth. She ached with a hunger and longing that she didn't realize was laying dormant inside her the entire time she had known Mark. 

He didn’t think a kiss could feel like gratifying like something was released inside of them the minute they touched. She tasted like magic, soft, velvet, and everything that made him press deeper into her mouth, angling his head so that he could kiss her properly. The warmth of her mouth consumed him, like a fire that was savaging him from the inside.

All the times when they’d get close or stare at each other’s lips, the feeling of her nails clawing into him made up for all the near misses. She arched into him and his mind grew hazy with the feeling of her wanting more of him. Needing more of him. And damned if he wasn’t about to give her everything she wanted. 

A kittenish pass of his tongue along her lips had her parting her lips so that he could kiss her deeper, harder until she pulled away with a gasp. She slid her hands into his collar, fisting it angrily before pressing her face against his. “Upstairs?”

“Wherever the fuck you want.” He breathed out, blinking at her, trying to regain focus. He curled his fingers into her hair, not pulling, just holding. 

She nodded before pulling him back against her mouth, skimming her teeth along his lip in a way that made him want to hand the reigns over to her and fall to her mercy. But instead, he ducked his mouth away and pressed them into her neck, nipping, and grazing as she tipped her head back. He pressed the flat of his palm against her stomach and gently pushed her until she got the message and began moving up the stairs. 

“What do you want?” She asked against his mouth, pressing sweet kisses across his face with a lot more tenderness than the way she anchored herself against him. 

“You.” He slurred against her mouth, “For a really fucking long time.”

Heiran felt like she was melting in honey as she slid her arms over his shoulders and his palms moved up her back. He pressed her against the wall next to her door before moving back up to her mouth. She paused, her eyes drinking in the sight of his hair mused, his lips swollen and wet, his eyes glazed. 

A shiver ran through her as his tattooed hand cupped her jaw, tilting her head back so that he could kiss her again. She couldn’t remember the last time she felt this good, this alive. Her moans were muffled against his mouth when his hands moved along a path over her body that her shivering. 

“So fucking pretty.” He grumbled against her lips, like her beauty pissed him off, “Wanted to mess you up so many times.”

She ran her nails against his damp hair, “Yeah?”

He hummed while reaching for her doorknob before pushing into her room, “Yeah, perfect hair, perfect makeup. Nothing was ever out of place with you. You were perfect. Wanted to ruin you.”

The underlying promise of what ruining her would entail sent pleasurable ripples through her body as she clutched harder into him. She sighed against him, ignoring any thought that wasn’t just him. He pulled away before leaning back, cupping the sides of her neck so he could take in the blown out look in her eyes. Heiran wanted to whine, complaining that he wasn’t doing anything other than stare at her. 

“But you ended up ruining me.” His voice was so soft like it was a secret meant for only the moon to hear. 

Her lips parted as she watched him in wonder. This wasn’t like with all the times before with Jaebum and it wasn’t like how she imagined her Tinder date would’ve ended. Because Mark wasn’t someone she had foolish romantic delusions about. He also wasn’t a faceless body that she only wanted for the sex. 

Mark was honest. He told her who he was, what he wanted, he even told her that there were parts of him and his past that he wasn’t ready to talk about. She knew everything about him and whatever he kept away, he told her that he was keeping it a secret. There was never any pretending or wondering if he was telling her the truth or hiding it from her. Trust was something she didn't give people easily, but with him, it felt like a natural thing to hand over. He was never anyone other than himself around her. 

He was stoic, subtle, grumpy, kind, and was always upfront with everything.

And it made the way his lips scorched across her neck feel that much more amazing. 

It was like she was floating and rooted at the same time. There was something in the way he looked at her like she owned him even though she could feel his gun tucked in his belt and the muscles that rippled under her touch. He could overpower her, he was stronger than her, but she felt like he was at her mercy when he’d gasp into her mouth and stared at her in awe. She felt so powerful after being forced to feel so weak and controlled. 

“You still want this?” She whispered as she lowered herself on the bed. 

He wanted to laugh, he was the one that barged into her house, asking her to sleep with him because he was a jealous motherfucker and he wanted to have her. _He_ should be the one double-checking with her, but Heiran never did anything she didn’t want.

He was so overwhelmed by her which was funny considering how she was practically falling apart because of him.

“So fucking badly.”

He pressed his knee into the mattress, between her legs, and kissed her until she was flat on her back and his hands were slipping under her shirt. 

“Want you to ruin me for anyone else.” 


	23. Twentythird

Heiran had woken up throughout the night to make sure Mark was still curled around her. 

It was a relief to find him with his face tucked into her neck and his arm bound around her waist, holding her firmly against his chest. She wanted to cry at how euphoric it all made her feel, every moment. From the way, he made the entire night about her and bringing her a type of ecstasy that no one could ever compete with to how he held her the second it was over like there was nothing more valuable to him than her. 

He touched her like he knew everything that made her tick as if all the time they had spent together had allowed him to study her. The Mark she was used to, spoke teasingly, withholding parts of himself he wasn’t ready to share. He was snarky and tough, refusing to be broken down easily. He could be hard to read and sometimes infuriatingly evasive. 

But the Mark that laid her down and made sure his mouth reached every inch of her skin was far different. Praise and affection poured out of his mouth with ease, never sparing with telling her beautiful he thought she was or how grateful she was for being with him. His eyes were warm, his lips were soft and his touch painted her red.

He made her feel beautiful in a way unlike when she’d smile at herself after doing her makeup. He made her feel like she wasn’t human. 

She still didn’t fully understand what happened tonight or how she felt about him, she wanted to stay like this forever. She wanted to sear every second from last night into her memory. 

Heiran turned into his hold, pressing her nose against his collarbone, breathing him in while running her hands down his chest, trying to imprint all his tattoos in her mind. He was still asleep but he shifted to accommodate the change in her position, his hand drifting into her hair and his other draping over her waist.

But when she woke up again by the glare of the sun, Mark was gone as were his clothes and the indent where his body was. Her chest felt empty but she knew that she couldn’t hold it against him. He said that it was for one night and she had agreed. It was probably better this way. She didn’t have to face him or the feeling of him pulling away from her body and stepping away from her. 

He was gone before she could miss him. 

It was smarter this way.

Heiran winced, a wonderful pulse surged through her body as she stood. She made quick work of washing up and changing, not letting her gaze linger on the mirror for too long. She didn’t want to notice a glow. 

And she didn’t want to notice how badly she missed Mark and maybe this entire thing was a mistake because now that she knew what he felt like under and over her, she couldn’t pretend that she didn’t. It was going to be hard to look him in the eye knowing what he looked like when he peaked or hearing him talk to her without mumbling baobei or moaning her name.

She picked out her outfit ensuring she wasn’t wearing white and _was_ wearing silk.

She stepped out of her room just as Lucy did, the two of them locking eyes. Heiran smiled, silently holding her hand out so that Lucy could race over, tucking her fingers into hers. “Hi, sunshine.”

Lucy grinned, pure and wonderful, “Hi, mom. Breakfast?”

Heiran glanced at her watch, “I’m running late so we might have to pick something up on our way. Is that okay?”

Lucy nodded quickly, probably excited that she was most likely going to get a donut. Heiran walked hand in hand with her daughter, swinging their hands as they walked down the stairs. Heiran kept her eyes on their feet, making sure they didn’t trip when she took a step forward and felt a tug on her hand. She paused and glanced back where Lucy stood frozen, refusing to budge as she stared at the foot of the steps. 

Heiran followed her gaze and felt stomach drop at the sight in front of her. 

Mark was leaning against the back of the couch, dressed in the clothes from last night, hinting that he probably never left her house, but chose to not be there when she woke. His arms were crossed over his chest and he had a scowl on his face as he stared at the other man standing next to him. 

Jaebum. 

He was dressed in a long coat and a button-up shirt, his polished shoes probably cost more than most people’s yearly income. Heiran immediately snapped her gaze to Lucy. She had no idea how the little girl would react to seeing Jaebum. 

They barely spoke about him, Heiran wasn’t even sure if Lucy fully remembered how much she had loved Jaebum and how inconsolable she had been when she found out that he was no longer going to be coming around to spend time with her.

Sensing their presence, both men looked at the two of them, frozen at the top of the stairs. Jaebum cleared his throat and she glanced back over at them. Her eyes barely glazed over him when they landed on Mark. The minute their eyes locked, his scowl melted into a small smile, his gaze softening. She wondered if he was thinking about last night. About how they fit together like a puzzle and every sensation, every explosion knocked the breath out of both of them. 

She wanted to walk into his arms and press her face into his neck. She craved his touch so much it felt unbearable. Why did she think that one night would be enough for her? Why didn’t she think about how this was going to make her already complicated feelings worsen?

“What…What’s happening?” She asked nervously, squeezing Lucy’s hand.

Mark eyed Jaebum, “Looks like you have two rides today.”

Jaebum tilted his head at Lucy with a wide smile, “Hi kiddo. Miss me?”

Heiran stiffened and before she could comfort Lucy, the girl tore out of her hand and raced down the stairs. Heiran couldn’t move, scared. Jaebum crouched with a smile, ready to lift her in his arms, but before he could hold his arms open, Lucy ran straight to Mark, clutching the leg of his jeans and pressing her face into it, to hide.

Mark stilled, staring at the little girl before slowly caressing the back of her head soothingly, “Want to ride with me?”

Lucy nodded and cowered when Jaebum stood. “I guess I deserve that.”

Mark looked at Heiran who looked distressed. “Duchess? I can take both of you if you want.”

“I’ll go with Jaebum.” She said, still refusing to move from the stairs. 

Mark’s brows furrowed before his face fell blank, “Right. Okay.”

Jaebum grinned, “Then let’s go, Seo. I’m parked out front.”

She gulped and nodded, “I’ll meet you outside.”

He hesitated before nodding, casting Lucy one more smile and left out the door. Mark also turned to leave when she finally pulled her feet off the ground and hurried down the stairs. 

“Wait.”

He shook his head, “You don’t need to explain anything to me.”

“I do.” She breathed out. “Lucy, can you go put your shoes on?”

The girl looked bothered but peeled off of Mark anyways. Once she was far enough away, Heiran turned to Mark, “I need to talk to him before we get to the courthouse. I need to…figure shit out." 

“Okay.” Mark said simply, “I’ll drop Lucy off and meet you both there.”

She bit down a whine, she hated that he was so good at acting like nothing had happened and held onto his arm. His head dropped and he clenched his jaw, “We said one night.”

“I don’t want one night, anymore.” She whispered. 

He looked at her, exasperated, “You’re about to marry someone else.”

“Do you regret it?” She asked.

He laughed darkly, “Yeah. Because I thought one night would be enough but all it did was make me want you more. Every day. Always.”

“Me too.” She said softly. 

He softened and cupped her cheek, “The reality is, without this marriage, I wouldn’t have ever made a move on you. I wouldn’t make your life complicated like that. I wouldn’t expect you to fit me in. When this whole thing blows over when every threat against you is gone, I’ll be out of your hair for good and you’ll move on. You’re going to have a better life with Lucy. I know it. Meanwhile, I’ll be thinking about last night until I die.”

“Mark.” She muttered. She didn’t know what to say. That if he just gave up his entire found-family, his entire career, livelihood, lifestyle, that she’d be willing to make it work? Would she be? And if they did decide to date, what if they broke up? What if she made him throw his entire life away for no reason? What exactly could she ask of him? What could she promise him?

Nothing. 

Which was why he was right to leave last night in the past and not trying to turn it into something more. 

She couldn’t ask him to give anything up for her. 

“Come on, baobei.” He said affectionately, “Let’s get you married.” 

\-----

“Why does Mark call you duchess?”

Heiran didn’t look at Jaebum and just sat stiffly next to him, “I don’t know. He's just always used that name.”

“You gave me hell just for calling you Seo.” He said with a small smile. 

She rolled her eyes, “Because it reminded me of my dad.”

“Right…shit. I’m sorry.” He muttered. “I’ll stop.”

Her shoulders were cramping from the tension in them, “Whatever, there’s no point changing it now.”

“I keep messing up around you, don’t I?” He asked softly. 

She finally turned to look at him, “Giving me an ultimatum to marry you certainly doesn’t help.”

He slowed the car, pulling off to a side road, “Heiran, if you don’t want this, I don’t want to force you.”

“Just keep driving.” She said softly, looking away. “Things are never going to be easy with us. There’s always going to be the history and animosity. There’s no point in trying to fix it. Right now, all I care about is keeping myself and Lucy alive.”

He sighed, “Look, I will try to make you happy, I’ll do everything I can to make this work for both of us.”

Heiran didn’t say much after. Sitting in Jaebum’s car felt similar to when she first sat in Mark’s car. Tense and unfamiliar. She wished she just agreed to go with Mark but even though she couldn’t stand Jaebum, a part of her felt bad seeing him get rejected by Lucy and didn’t want to reject him for a second time.

She stared out the window, her mind floating to Mark, daydreaming about last night. The memories of his hands sliding under her skirt and his mouth pressed against her throat flooded over her with a tantalizing warmth. It all felt like a dream, that a man who always hovered over her like a shadow, filling her with his presence but never his touch, had kissed her with a type of passion that made her knees weak. 

She still couldn’t believe it happened. 

“You and Mark are close, aren’t you?” 

Heiran flinched at Jaebum’s voice and wondered if maybe she had said Mark’s name out loud but he kept his gaze on the road, “Yeah, we are. He’s been with me for 6 months now? Yeah.”

“Been with you?”

She gulped, “Like, protected me.”

Jaebum nodded, his brows creased together, “I never thought he’d be a fan of kids but clearly Lucy is attached to him.”

“What do you mean?” She asked with a frown.

He glanced at her, “Huh? Oh, just that he was never really the nurturing type. I guess he’s different around you.”

“How do you know him? You talk like you two go way back.” 

Jaebum blinked, “He never told you?”

“Uh…no. I sorta figured you two knew each other based on how he acted when you came to my office but he didn’t really elaborate.” 

Jaebum’s lips lifted and he shook his head, “Me and Mark were really close. There’s a reason he was tasked to look after you when I became a threat. If I was anyone else, your dad would’ve sent one of the other GOT7 guys.”

“How? When would your paths have crossed?” She asked.

He pulled into the courthouse parking lot before killing the engine. He turned and looked at her, “If I told you, he’d go on a rampage. You’re going to have to ask him yourself.”

She huffed and looked at him, “Wow, not even married yet and you’re already keeping secrets.”

Jaebum grinned and opened his door, “Let’s go and make it official, then my secrets become your secrets, Seo."

\-----

It wasn’t a grande affair. 

You couldn’t even call it a wedding. Not that she was particularly bothered by it.

There were no flowers, no white dress, no cake, no fanfare. 

Once Mark met them at the courthouse, they let a clerk read their vows as they barely made eye contact with Mark as the witness. Jaebum pulled out a set of rings that she didn’t even know he had and then shared a dry kiss before picking up their license from the floor above them.

They managed to get married before most people went out from their lunch break.

She always assumed that after you got married, you’d feel different. But she felt exactly the same. The three of them congregated in the lobby of the courthouse and Heiran struggled to make eye contact with any of them. 

Jaebum, her ex who was now her new husband. 

Mark, who she couldn’t stop thinking about sleeping with.

“What now?” She asked. 

Jaebum stared at the marriage certificate in his hands while slipping his pen into his pocket, “Nothing now. I’ll get my people to start spreading the word that we’re married and that you’re officially off-limits. I’m sure your father will do the same.“

Heiran stared at the wedding band on her finger, “Okay, I guess.”

“Do you want to get coffee or something?” Jaebum asked softly. 

How bizarre, most newlyweds want to consummate their marriage, meanwhile, they couldn’t even get lunch together. 

“I don’t think that’s the best idea.”

Jaebum looked dejected but he tried to smile, “Then, I’ll take you home.”

She opened her mouth to reject the offer but Mark cut in, “Yeah, drive her home. I need to go by the office anyways.”

Heiran looked at him desperately, he had been silent the entire time he was there, just standing where he needed to, signing whatever documents were handed to him. She didn’t know what his face looked like when a ring was slid on her finger and a kiss was placed on her lips. He just gave her a half-hearted smile. 

Maybe being around her was hard for him just like being apart from him was hard for her.

“Will you come by the house when you’re done?” She asked. 

He couldn’t meet her eyes, “I don’t know how late I’ll be. I’ll let you know.”

Heiran’s shoulders dropped and she nodded. “Alright.”

“Sounds good. Oh and Mark?” Jaebum quipped.

Mark’s eye twitched before he turned to him. “What?”

“Now that she’s married to me, I’d like you to give me back the ring.” Jaebum said blankly. 

Heiran’s eyes widened and Mark stiffened, his eyes darted to his fist where the promise ring sat. He looked back at Jaebum with a glare who only smiled, “I mean, it’s originally mine, right?”

Mark clenched his jaw, he knew what Jaebum was doing. He didn’t really need the ring back, but he knew that Mark had no ground to stand on to say no. He had no excuse for wanting to keep the ring. And any excuse or reason he _did_ have, there was no way he was going to admit out loud. He pulled the ring off his finger and dropped it in Jaebum’s palm.

“Congrats.” Mark muttered through his teeth before turning and walking away.

\-----

“I…got you these.” Heiran blinked at the bouquet of roses that Jaebum held out for her. “I know this isn’t a real marriage and we don’t have a real relationship, but I’m going to do what I can to make you feel cherished.”

Heiran sighed and took the flowers, “Thanks, you didn’t have to.”

Since Mark had told her to go with Jaebum, she didn’t have an excuse anymore so she had agreed to get coffee with him. He brought her to a trendy coffee shop with aesthetic tiles lining the walls and marble countertops. 

He bought her iced coffee that was way too expensive and they sat by the window. “How are you?”

“That’s a loaded question, Jae.” She mumbled. 

His eyes sparkled at the sound of his nickname, “I know, I’m sorry. Is there anything I could do to make this better?”

“Just…keep up your side of this deal.” She said tiredly. "Um, so you kept the pen?"

Jaebum's hand went to his breast pocket before smiling lightly, "Yeah, you got it for me."

"That's sentimental of you." She mused. 

"I'm not heartless, Seo." He said softly.

Her face immediately soured and he winced, knowing that he had done nothing to proclaim to have a heart. She had no reason to believe him. He cleared his throat and shifted topics, “How’s work?” 

“Oh.” She snorted, “I was suspended with pay.”

“Fuck. What the hell? Why?” He asked, confusion filtering through his gaze. 

She sighed, “My father had a fake company come in and pretend to be a tech startup. They were my biggest client and I had no idea. He laundered money through it and now that the police are circling and a huge merger depended on them. I had to blow up the deal before anyone at my company looked into the fake company before the merger. I needed to cut ties with them and I thought I could salvage the loss but the merger ended up falling through which cost our company millions of dollars.”

“So why are you on suspension instead of them firing you?” He asked. 

She looked away, “My performance had been slipping lately. I haven’t been as present at work. Now my company wants to investigate. I think they assume there’s been a conflict of interest or something. I don't know. I’m waiting to hear back.”

“Jesus. I’m sorry. I know you loved that job.” 

She winced, “Fuck, Jae, you can’t just say shit like that. As if you’ve been a part of my life this whole time.”

“Right.” He said apologetically. “I’m sorry.”

“And enough with the apologies. They won’t fix anything.” She snapped. 

He flinched and nodded while averting his eyes. Her shoulders dropped, she felt awful when he was trying so hard. She took a long breath, “Have you been keeping tabs on me?”

"Just a little.” He confessed, “I try not to pry into anything private, I just follow you on the news. Sometimes on social media. Nothing that wasn’t already accessible to the public.” 

She nodded, “What did you think?”

“Huh?”

“When you saw me and my life. What did you think?”

He smiled widely, “I was _so_ proud of you. You worked so hard in university and you managed to get the job of your dreams, live this amazing life while also taking care of Lucy. All those all-nighters and the tears you shed when you got those job rejections finally paid off.”

She was speechless, just watching the love and adoration pour out of his face as if he was talking about his own accomplishments and not gushing about someone else’s. “I wish things were different with us.”

His smile faltered as he watched her, “What do you mean?”

“It would’ve been nice if you told me the truth. We could’ve been so happy. You could’ve been with me to celebrate all my milestones instead of having to tell me about it years later.” She admitted. 

He licked his dry lips, “We can still be happy together.”

“I don’t think we can.” She said softly.

His shoulders sagged, “Heiran, I want to tell you that I wished the same, I really do. That we could've stayed together if I had just come clean, but honestly, no matter what you tell yourself, you wouldn’t have been able to live yourself once you knew what I was doing. Things wouldn’t have been normal after the initial shock and fight, not if you knew where I was going every time I left the house. Maybe you'd pretend to be okay for a little while but not forever. Then what? You’d ask me to leave the gang? Find a normal job when I had no formal education or skills? Become a cop? You would’ve never stuck around to see me become a leader of a gang.”

“Maybe you’re right.” She said quietly. 

Jaebum twisted the ring on his finger, “I bought these rings before we broke up. I was going to propose before I realized that if I did, you and Lucy would be in danger for the rest of your lives.”

“Oh.” She breathed out with wide eyes while staring at her hand. 

Jaebum smiled softly, “Maybe you’ve started to change, Seo. You’re so protective and attached to Mark even though he’s a criminal like me and he works for your dad. I don’t know what your relationship with him is, but if you can accept him and care for him, maybe I still have a chance.”

\-----

“Hey, pumpkin.”

She rolled her eyes and let her father in after her, “Today has been a parade of men from my past.”

“I won’t stay long. I just wanted to see you.”

She dropped her bags and the bouquet on the couch, “What for?”

“I don’t know. I think I’m just melancholic. A father always thinks that he’ll give away their daughter when she gets married and walk her down the aisle. I’m sorry for not giving you that.”

She sighed, “It’s okay, I’ve given up on that tradition a while ago.”

“Okay, pumpkin. I’ll go. I, um, brought this cake. It’s nothing special but you never got to cut a cake, I'm sure you don't want to cut one with DS but, maybe you and Lucy can. This marriage isn't really a celebration for you, but I wanted you to experience something.” He said while setting it down.

She paused, staring at his eyes, and for the first time, she felt sorry for her father. Maybe it was because she had spent a huge part of the day with Jaebum, that she was feeling bad for constantly turning down the efforts of people who wanted to mend a broken relationship. 

At this point, her father was her only family aside from Lucy. No matter what she wanted, he was still family. Would she be okay knowing that she no longer had any parents?

Maybe she didn’t have to forgive him right now, she wasn’t ready for that. But maybe if she put more effort into it, the resentment and anger she felt could fade. She wasn’t about to buy him a World’s Best Dad mug but maybe she could get to a place where she’d send him a text on the holidays.

“Thanks, dad.” She said.

He froze, his eyes wide. Heiran offered him a smile and his own lips stretched into a beam. He looked so happy over a small gesture, “Of course, pumpkin. If you need anything, you can call me.”

“I will.”

\-----

Mark spent the day heated, angry, and away from Heiran. 

He couldn’t be around her because it wasn’t fair for her. They both agreed on the one night, they both knew what the marriage would mean and where they stood with each other. He couldn’t be hurt or angry over it when he had no right. 

But waking up to Heiran clinging against him, her bare legs tangled against his and her lips pressed against his chest was too much. He wanted to stay. He wanted to wake up with her, share a bathroom with her, and make breakfast together. He wanted her just as much as he did when he first kissed her.

And last night, fuck, he never felt like that before. He didn’t think he could feel so overcome with lust and need like he'd die if he didn't have her. But it wasn’t like before when he’d just chase after both their highs as fast as possible. He wanted to savour every second of her, memorize it and lock it away because it would be the last and only time. 

It was everything he knew it would be.

Heiran was a dream.

However, that didn’t mean that anything had changed. 

He still killed people for a living, he was still 6 feet under when it came to the law. She was a mother who lived an honest, clean life, and values that drove her. There was nothing there that was worth him uprooting both their lives over feelings that he wasn’t sure of.

What did he want? For them to date? 

The entire concept seemed bizarre considering the situation they were in. 

He didn’t understand what he felt towards her and even if he did, he couldn’t offer her much. Even if they dated, he couldn’t promise they’d be happy. They were different, they’d fight, they wouldn’t see eye to eye. She’d regret it. They’d fall apart and everything they sacrificed would be worth shit. 

If he chose to leave GOT7 for someone, he needed to know that it’d be something that’d last. 

He didn’t think he and Heiran would allow it to last. 

Knocking on her door, he waited a long second before something in him snapped and he used the copy of her key he had made and unlocked the door himself. Something he rarely did. Heiran froze mid-step when he opened the door and stepped in, most likely coming to open it herself. 

“Hey…” She said softly. 

He nodded, his eye darting to her hand. He raised a brow, “You’ve been married exactly 4 hours and you already took the ring off?”

She rolled her eyes, “I don’t like wearing jewelry at home.”

“Want cake?” She asked glancing over her shoulder as she turned back. 

He followed her to the kitchen where a half-eaten cake set on the countertop, “Why are you eating cake directly out of the box alone?”

“My dad brought it over.” She said. “Said that since I didn’t get a wedding cake to cut, I should get the chance to do it. Don’t touch that corner, I’m saving it for Lucy.”

He took the fork from her and broke off a piece of cake before eating it, “Not eating it with the husband?”

“Stop.” She muttered, gravitating towards him so that their shoulders pressed together, “I’m eating it with myself.”

“And me.” 

She looked at him and felt her heart slow and endorphins flush through her, “And you.”

Heiran leaned close, wanting to taste the frosting off his mouth. She tilted her head up and Mark met her halfway but instead of closing the gap of their lips, he just pressed their foreheads together, “We can’t, duchess.” 

“I’m not actually in a relationship with him. It’s not cheating.” She grumbled. 

He let out a breath, basking in her presence, “It’s not that. The minute we make this a common occurrence, things are going to get even more complicated and messy. It’ll start meaning more and more to us. I don’t think either of us is ready to deal with that. Your marriage is the excuse we’re going to hide behind for now.”

“I really thought you’d be more impulsive.” She muttered.

He laughed roughly before smoothing his palm around her hip, “I am, the fact that I came back here is proof when I know I should stay away.”

She sighed and moved away from his hold to lean over the cake, taking a bite. “Mark?”

He hummed as he stepped around the counter. He needed the island to separate the two of them. She set her fork down and stared into his eyes, “Can you tell me about you and Jaebum?”

“Duchess.”

“I’ve told you everything about me and him. It’s only fair.”

Mark hesitated because she was right. She was always offering up parts of her past that she struggled with and he never returned the gesture, “I met Jaebum when I was 12? Or maybe 13. I don’t know, that time years sorta blurred together.”

“Where did you meet him?”

Mark took a deep breath, his nails digging into the flesh of his palm, “I used to be a member of DS.”

Heiran’s eyes widened, her jaw slacked, “Really?”

“Yeah. Not for long. I was brought on when I was 12 and then left when I was 15. I joined GOT7 a year later. Jaebum was also brought on around the same time. So we were both new recruits in the same age range. We just stuck with each other.” He admitted. He looked pained, like each word was torture to say out loud.

Heiran wished she could touch him, “You were friends?”

“At first, yeah. Best friends. Brothers. We had no one to rely on but each other. But DS back in the day was run differently. If you stole a little money, talked back, failed directives, were weak or had a side hustle, you’d be punished.” He muttered. "Some people were starved, waterboarded, mutilated, psychologically tormented, had loud sirens blare in their ears until they were almost deaf."

Her eyes widened, “How?”

“You know that room you were held in? It’s called The Bunker. You’d be thrown in there until you were broken and only DS was keeping you alive. The old leader would find different ways to punish you depending on the person and their specific weaknesses. He'd pray on them..” He explained. 

He clutched his hands together, “I was always pitted against Jaebum because we relied on each other more than we did on DS and he knew that. He knew we were best friends. We’d be locked in that room and only allowed to leave when one of us was on the brink of death. It was basically a cage match. We’d have to beat each other within an inch of our lives.”

“Fuck.” She let out, “But you were kids.” 

He nodded, his gaze on the floor, “We would come up with a plan, take turns losing, and try to pretend like we were in pain so that we’d be let out sooner without actually being near death. But then something changed when we got older. Jaebum got greedy. He wanted to rise up the ranks and realized that The Bunker was a test to prove who was more worthy.”

Heiran could only stare, any comment trapped in her chest.

“So he turned on me. He’d throw me under the bus, he’d get me in trouble so I'd be punished and when we were in The Bunker he’d beat me to a pulp before I could even get one swing in. He became the favourite and I was barely surviving. After a while, I’d had enough. I was constantly fighting, wanting to beat anyone who bothered me. My instinct was just to fight and draw blood to survive. I was angry and abandoned. I felt like I almost had a family but DS destroyed any sort of relationship I built in there. So one night I just ran. I took off with a bag of clothes and a pocket of money I stole and escaped. For about 6 months I lived on the streets and tried to stay hidden until I met your dad. He offered to take me in and I agreed because the thought of being under a bigger gang was better than being on the run on my own.”

Heiran wondered if she would’ve had the strength to run away and start over, forcing herself to survive and not give up at that age. When she lost her mother and had to raise Lucy on her own, she thought about giving up so many times and she was nearly twice the age Mark was when he joined DS.

He rubbed his face tiredly, “It was nice in GOT7. No bunker. No punishments unless you really fucked up and even those were never that bad, you’d just get yelled at. The people there just focused on their own roles and never really bothered with the politics. That was it.”

“God. I’m sorry.” She muttered. 

He shook his head, “I don’t think I was a violent person. Usually, it was in self-defense. But being in DS triggered something in me. The only way I communicated was with my fists. GOT7 helped me channel it, I wasn’t lashing out just bc someone looked at me funny. I was only violent against people who put us in danger.”

“It’s not your fault, you know.” She said. 

Mark picked at the thread in his jeans, “Do you think there’s something wrong with me? For being that violent so young? Like psychologic—“

“No. I don’t.” She said firmly, “The fact that you tried to avoid beating up your friend for as long as you could, is what matters. You even came up with a loophole. It’s not your fault that Jaebum turned on you. At that point, you had to defend yourself.”

He nodded slowly, the tension in his shoulder slowly unwinding at her acceptance. He never thought that Heiran would understand. He assumed she’d recoil away at what he was capable of doing when he was only a few years older than Lucy. Just because Jaebum always won in The Bunker didn’t mean that Mark never fought back. He did. He knocked Jaebum around a lot, just not enough to win. 

The fact that she wasn’t disgusted or thought he was a merciless monster meant more than he could describe.

“I can’t believe he did that to you. That’s not okay. I can’t believe this.” She seethed. 

Mark just shrugged, “I hate him. I can’t stand him but I don’t blame him. I know he wanted to survive too and we were put in a volatile environment that just bred violence. DS wanted us to be soldiers who had no weakness. Jaebum was traumatized at a young age just like I was. He was my friend at one point. But it’s like I told you, it takes a certain personality to take over an entire syndicate at his age. Jaebum had that personality ever since he was young. I didn’t.”

“I can’t believe that’s the same man who bought me flowers.” She muttered. 

Mark smiled bitterly, “I think you changed him. I think with you, he couldn’t get away with controlling people or using violence. That’s why I think he actually loves you. He’s not a sociopath, the sides he showed you were honest, he doesn’t show them to anyone except you because no one else made him love someone as much. But that’s why he’s so shit at trying to win you back. He thinks that if he just tries hard enough, or loves you loud enough you’ll take him back.”

“I don’t want him back, though.” She whispered, eyes not leaving his face.

Mark just stared at her when her lip started to quiver. Mark was so solid, even when talking about things that hurt him, he remained unmoved. It was hard for her to watch.

It reminded her so much of herself.

“Can I please hug you?” She asked.

His mouth pulled up before holding his arms out. She rushed into his embrace, burying her face into his neck and clutching him tightly. She thought all this time that Jaebum just popping up in her life only caused her pain and old memories. She hadn’t realized that his presence brought back ugly pasts for Mark too. And the entire time, he was soothing her, talking her down from her anger, listening to her tell him how much she used to love Jaebum, watched her say yes to marrying him. 

Mark never flinched, never got mad at her, never took his resentment out on her, hell, he would convince her that Jaebum actually loved her. That the man who scarred him deserved the benefit of doubt. 

Clambering onto his lap, Heiran held him to her chest, holding the back of his head. His hands draped over her waist so that she was anchored against his thighs. They sat there for what felt like hours, just a mess of limbs and heavy laboured breathing. 

For someone who went through so much pain, Mark had so much empathy and such little anger in him. She had always thought that the violence of his job meant that he was a violent, rage-filled murderer. And that the hard exterior was proof of that. 

But she felt like she was holding the 12 years old Mark in her arms. 

She desperately wanted to know how he ended up with DS in the first place at such a young age, but she didn’t have it in her to make him share anything more. “I really want to kiss you.”

Mark laughed against her collarbones, his warm breath slipping across her neck, “So, do I.”

She tried to pull away so that she could kiss him but he tightened his grip, “But for now, this is enough.”


	24. Twentyfourth

You know how when a bomb goes off, your hearing explodes and all you can hear is a high pitched scream?

You’re so disoriented, your visions white, your balance off, that you just stumble around until it fades away?

That was what this very moment felt like.

“I don’t understand.”

Her CEO sighed as he set his coffee mug down, “We’re letting you go. The investigation is inconclusive but we found enough to indicate you’ve been negligent.”

“No. This is rash. I can make the money back up. I’ll find new investors, you don’t need to resort to this.” Heiran begged. 

He shook his head, “I’m sorry. There’s no negotiating this. You’re lucky the only thing you’re getting is a nice severance package. Samsung wanted to sue but they agreed to back off if we let you go. We were hesitant at first but the investigation was enough to prove that we needed to do it.”

“What did the investigation prove exactly?” She asked.

“That you’ve ignored Samsung’s multiple requests to get in touch, that you’ve been out of the office, that you’ve threatened the other executives, that you offered no guidance when SmartLogic negotiated on their own, it’s a long list Heiran. I—I’m at a loss right now. All this time I thought you were someone with integrity and dedication, you used to be so hardworking and diligent. I wanted you to one day take over my position because I saw so much in you. I was priming you for that, but I’m so disappointed with you right now.” He said with a long sigh. "I feel let down. Fooled into thinking that you could handle yourself on your own."

Her hands begun shaking and the urge to cry and throw a fit was growing. “I’m sorry, please, _please_ reconsider. I’ve done so much good for this company. So much growth just from my department alone. You can’t just forget all of that over this one mistake. Let me fix it. I know I can. I just need a second chance. I'm begging you.”

“Heiran, the Samsung deal is worth more than everything you brought in for us. You lost it all in one deal. We might have to lay people off and downsize your department now because of it. Are you going to take responsibility for all those careers and their families?” He barked. 

She shrank under his glare, unfamiliar with hearing that tone directed at her, “N-no.”

He massaged his temples, “I don’t know where you went wrong, Heiran. I don’t know if it’s something happening at home or if you’re just burnt out, but you used to be untouchable. People were scared to even look you in the eye. But now it’s like you’ve become small and weak and all the things you used to swear you’d never be. I feel as though I don't even recognize you.”

She winced at each of his words. Although they were true, they completely lacked the context of what her life had now become. Being overrun by her father and her ex who threatened everything that was precious to her, things weren’t easy. It wasn’t fair to be expected to stay strong through all of that. 

“Sir—“

“Pack your things up and go. You have two weeks, but I don’t want you here.” He muttered, turning his chair to face away from her.

She stayed seated for an entire minute before slowly pushing herself out of her seat and stumbling to her office. The bomb had gone off and as she packed her things in boxes that were already set up, she barely acknowledged Eun crying. There was just a high pitched ringing in her ears as her hands moved on auto-pilot as if her palms were prepared for clearing out her office. 

There was just too much debris, and she wasn’t sure she’d ever be able to patch everything back up.

All she’d have were the broken pieces.

\-----

With her entire career packed up in the back of her car, taking up an embarrassingly small amount of space despite the years she had spent building a legacy, Heiran left her office and drove straight to GOT7’s headquarters while her anger continued to overflow. 

She rammed her car over the gates, unbothered to how it smashed the front of her car before storming out and pounding her fists against the door.

“Open the door, you motherfuckers!” She screamed, her fists flying, “I know you’re in there! Stop ignoring me and face me, cowards!”

Her fists were beginning to throb when the door finally opened. She stumbled forward, panting as she stared at a man she didn’t recognize. He blinked at her before his eyes widened a fraction, “You’re Heiran.”

She huffed, pushing past him before storming through the building. She had only been here once before but she knew exactly where to go to find her father’s office. She had put up with a lot ever since he showed up in front of her, throwing her life into a total catastrophe.

No matter how angry she was, she always tried to hold back, keeping her emotions inside, but not anymore. Not when he ruined everything about her life with complete disregard. She had enough, enough with compromise, enough with trying, enough with being the bigger and better person. 

She was angry. 

And she wanted him to know.

\-----

“Good. I know it was hard but it had to be done. I’ll send a shipment your way by the end of the day. Thanks.”

Mark watched as his Boss hung up before speaking, “What was that?”

“Not important. How’s the marriage going?” He asked. 

Mark shrugged, avoiding eye contact, “Okay, I guess. They don’t really interact much so her life is pretty much unchan—“

“I’ll kill you!”

He stiffened at Heiran’s scream and turned to see her barge in. He frowned, eyeing her father before looking at her. He immediately saw her bloodshot eyes, flushed face, and utter rage burning through her. 

And he had no idea why. 

His Boss looked equally stunned at her outburst, “Pumpkin?”

“Fuck you.” She barked. “You ruined everything! You took away my life. My safety. Almost my child. And now my job. Everything I worked for. Everything I sacrificed for. Everything important to me.”

Mark felt his heart sink, “Your job? Did you get fired?”

She ignored Mark and just glared at her father, “It was all because of you. If it wasn’t for your fake company, I wouldn’t have had to ruin the merger, I wouldn’t have had to cost my company millions and I would’ve have had to been fired!”

She growled and ran at her father, arms outstretched for his neck, but Mark was quick to intervene, stepping in front of her while holding her wrists, “Don’t do this, Heiran. Just talk to us.”

Heiran ripped her hands out of his hold and stepped back, panting. Her father finally recovered from her abrupt entrance and quickly walked around his desk to her, “I’m so sorry, pumpkin, I didn’t think they’d ever fire you, but I’m sure someone as distinguished and qualified as you can find an even better job in seconds.”

“Not if they blacklist me. Everyone’s going to know that I’m the person that blew up one of the biggest deals of the year. No one will want such a huge liability in their company and it’s not like my old boss is going to give me a glowing recommendation now.” She spat, furious tears leaking down the sides of her face.

He gulped, scrambling for something, “I’m sure you have enough money saved for you and Lucy until you find another job.”

“What if they sue me?” She asked, trembling, “Samsung is a huge corporation and they lost millions because of me. They said they wouldn’t sue me but who knows? I could lose everything. Every penny I worked for, Lucy’s tuition, money for her wedding, her first house, first car, all of it.”

He hung his head, at a loss, “I never meant for any of this to happen.”

She scoffed, “Yeah but you’re all fine, aren’t you? I lost my job, I’m a single parent and I don’t have any income. I could lose everything but you haven’t lost a single thing. You spent years making money off of my back, lining your pockets and now that I’ve become disposable, you tell me you're sorry but your bank accounts are still fine. You still have money coming in.”

She turned to gaze to land on Mark, “All of you.”

His eyes widened, his parting at her implication. “Duch—“

“You get paid off of the money that my company helped you clean. Your fancy apartment is partly paid for because of me and now I’ve lost my job because of it.” Her words came out as a whisper but the pain and hatred was still heavy, wiping the room into a pregnant pause. 

She stepped away from Mark, “I thought…I thought I could be okay with all of this. That maybe I could make peace with the shit you’ve done, but this…losing everything, having it all taken away from me. It’s not worth it. It’s not worth _anything_ you could ever offer me.”

He knew that although it sounded like she was talking about GOT7 as a whole and her father, that she was really talking about him. His throat dried and his stomach plummeted at what she was saying. That she was trying to be okay with his life and his crimes, that she wanted to accept him and for a moment, she considered that any conflict she might have with his job was worth whatever relationship they could share. 

Loving him would’ve been worth all the other shit. 

Would’ve.

Not anymore. 

Now, he was nothing but someone who benefitted off of her father lying and using her. Someone who put her in the precarious position to start with. 

And now, she wanted nothing to do with him or her father. 

Knowing that she could've been in a place where she was willing to feel something for him, fuck, it made him take back all the doubts and denials of that being possible. He wanted that now. He wanted all of that, but this was just proof that everything that used to scare him was true. 

He could only hurt people.

“Heiran…” It came out more like a beg crossed with an apology. 

She shook her head and looked at her father, “I hate you, I hate you all so much. This job wasn’t just a paycheque, it was my dream. I could’ve been the fucking CEO one day. I slaved away to get to where I am and now I have nothing and it’s all because of something I didn’t even do. It's all because of you. I beat all the odds to get where I am but my worthless deadbeat father took that away from me."

“Pumpkin, please, I can fix this, I can make it up to you.” He pleaded. 

She took another step back, her anger, as quickly as it took over her, had drained out of her system and was now replaced with sadness and fatigue. 

“I don’t want anything to do with you. You got what you wanted. SmartLogic is no longer working with us, Samsung isn’t going to be sniffing around, all your dirty money is safe. So leave me alone.” She muttered, turning on her heel. 

Mark grabbed her arm gently, pulling her back, “Wait, let me drive you home.”

“No.” She hissed, ripping her arm back, “When I said that I’m done, I meant with _all_ of you. I don’t need your protection or your attention. Leave me the _fuck_ alone.” 

Mark staggered back like he had been slapped and watched her stalk out of the room. When her father made no move to chase after her, he did.

\-----

“Stop. Please stop.” Mark wheezed out as he caught up with Heiran who was standing by her car. 

She shot him a glare, “I made myself clear.”

“I know.” He panted out, “And you’re right to be mad at me, everything you said was true. Your father may have orchestrated this all, but we all benefitted from it. But you can’t just cut me out of your life.”

She levelled her gaze at him, the same look she’d give the pathetic snivelling men who tried to drag her down, “Yes I can. I’m the person who made Jaebum agree to let you stay around me in the first place. Not because I wanted you to protect me but because I wanted you around because you made me feel safe. But I don’t feel safe anymore. I feel used. I hate you for that."

He flinched before reaching to touch her cheek but she just turned her face, her lip quivering, “There’s nothing for you to protect me from anymore and if there is, I’m married now, thanks to your Boss, I guess I’ll just go to my husband for help.”

That burned. 

He stepped closer so that he was in her space without a single inch of himself touching her except for his heat, “Don’t.” He whispered, “Don’t go to him. Please. Don’t push me away.”

“Why?” She muttered, “You want to sleep with me again? An extra perk of the job?”

“Fuck you.” He said with no venom, “You know it was _never_ like that. I like you, I made that clear. Even if you hate me, I need to know you’re safe. And as someone who would do _anything_ for you, the thought of you going to Jaebum is killing me.”

She laughed dryly, she was basically pinned against her car even though he wasn’t caging her in, “The only reason he’s back in my life is because of GOT7, it’s not my fault that it kills you. How the hell do you think I feel?”

“How do you feel?” He asked.

She smiled wryly, “I feel like an idiot for not seeing the bigger picture despite knowing since day one that I should've stayed away from you. I'm a moron for falling for you, for letting you into mine and Lucy’s life, all of it. I feel angry that I felt safest around you and now I’m jobless with a husband I barely know. I feel a lot of things, Mark.”

His breathing was heavy as he stared into her eyes, wishing she could read everything he was too much of a coward to say out loud. Honestly, even if he was able to say any of it, it wouldn’t change her mind. 

“You matter to me.” He breathed out, “So much it doesn’t make sense. So much that it puts me on edge. I don’t know, I can’t think straight around you. It’s terrifying but what’s worse is knowing that every fucking day my job, my gang, ruins your life. I’m so sorry for that.”

Tears finally fell down her face before she turned her head up to the sky, “That’s not fair. You don’t get to say this now.”

“I know.” He said softly, finally touching her to wipe the tears off her face, “I know, I’m sorry. I’m just saying that I’ll give you what you want. I’ll give you space, I’ll stay away, but _please_ don’t think it’s because I forgot you or stopped having feelings for you.”

She scoffed weakly, “What feelings? You’ve never told me what you felt. You always just deflect and avoid.” 

“Because it wouldn’t matter what I felt when _this_ is how I make you feel.” He admitted sadly.

He stepped back, giving her space, “Please be safe.”

Heiran cleared her throat and nodded before opening her car door. Mark watched as she drove away and wondered, for the first time, if this was what heartbreak felt like.

\-----

When she pulled up to his driveway, he was already swinging the front door open staring at her with wide eyes. 

“Seo?”

She got out of her car and leaned against the hood, “I didn’t know where else to go.”

Jaebum hurried down the steps and stood in front of her, “I saw you come in on our security cameras. What happened? Are you okay?”

“I don’t know.” She whispered. She wanted Mark. Why did she let him give her space? She immediately regretted driving away from him. She wanted to stay. She wanted to fight with him.

His eyes scanned her face, “Wanna come inside?”

“No.” She muttered, “Last time I was in there, I was being held against my will.”

He winced before grazing her shoulder, “What if you come to my office? It’s nowhere near where you were kept and it’s way nicer.”

She hesitated before nodding, “Okay.”

He reached for her hand and she flinched. He sighed and just rested his palm on her back, leading her into his building until she was seated in his office. Despite how gaudy the rest of the headquarters were, his office was more modestly decorated. White marble desk, black and white paints on the wall and tall leafy plants tucked into the corners. 

“Whiskey?” He asked, lifting a bottle. 

She leaned against her fist, “I’m driving.”

“I’ll call you a cab.”

She watched him pinch two crystal glasses between his fingers before sighing, “Sure.”

She didn't know why she was here, frankly, she didn't want to be here. But she had nowhere else to go and no one else to talk to. She was too angry to leave these feelings bottled up. 

He set them down on his table and poured two fingers in before handing it to her, “What happened?”

“I got fired.” 

He froze, eyes wide, his glass lingering against his lip, “Fuck. I’m sorry, Seo.”

“Yeah, I’ve been hearing a lot of that.” She muttered, taking a sip. 

He sat down next to her before staring off ahead of him, “I thought you were _just_ being investigated?”

“Yeah, well, investigation finished and it turns out they can’t keep me around.” She muttered. 

He set his drink down and eyed her, “What did Mark say?”

“I’m mad at all of them. This happened because of them, Mark included.” She grumbled.

His lips quirked when he noticed the little ding sound the ring on her finger made whenever it knocked against the glass, “You’re not actually mad at him, are you?”

“He made clean money off of my back and now I’m out of a job. What is that?” She exclaimed.

Jaebum leaned back, leaning towards her, “It’s the job, Seo. I wish I could admonish them, but that’s what this work does, people are just things we use to get what we want.”

“I can’t believe _you_ just said that to me. You don't really have much of a right. Don’t fucking normalize that shit.” She barked. 

He shook his head with a small smile, “I’m not normalizing it. I’m telling you what it’s like, but there are exceptions, it’s why I stayed with you even after my assignment was over, it’s why Mark comes to me to tell me to stay away from you, and it’s why your father is the way that he is. They didn’t want this to happen to you any more than you did.”

“Yeah, right.” She huffed.

He took her hand, thumbing over her ring, “Listen, I may not love your dad or Mark but I know that they would do anything for you to have not lost your job, not just for their gain but because it’s no secret how much you love it.”

“I have a right to be angry.” She said, pulling her hand back. This was all messed up. She didn't want this. She wanted Mark to hold her hand, to reassure her. She didn't want to be mad at him. She didn't want him to look at her like he knew he disappointed her. She didn't want to run out of people she could confide in that she had to turn to Jaebum of all people.

He nodded, “You do. But you also need to admit this is no one’s ideal situation and that it’s hard for anyone to control it. It’s hard to stop things from getting worse but you know they’re trying. You didn’t deserve to be in this situation at all in the first place, but there’s no going back, you can’t change the past.”

“So, what? I’m just supposed to be okay with this? I’ve lost everything, they’ve lost _nothing_.” She spat.

He fell silent at that, “That’s true. But at least they’re trying to help you redeem your losses, I’m sure your father can pull some strings and get y—”

“I don’t want him to get me anything with his connections. They wouldn’t be legal.” She snapped.

He backed off, “Okay, you have two choices here. You can either cut them out of your life or you can be mad at them but allow them to make it up to you.”

“Why are you defending them?” She asked incredulously.

He shrugged, “I guess I’m in the same boat as they are with you. I fucked up, I hurt you, and now I want you to know that I’d do anything for you and that sometimes in order to protect the people they love, people make decisions that might hurt that person. If you can give them another chance, then maybe you can give me one. And, _fuck,_ Seo, I'm living on scotch and prayers that you might take me back one day. I'd do anything for that chance.”

She wasn’t drunk but she had a buzz. Tilting her head up, she found his face close to hers, his eyes coaxing her attention.

She glanced at his lips but not in yearning. In a second she was 20 again. It was unsettling that the man who she was willing to put her entire future in did what he did to Mark. Jaebum was so much of her youth but she had grown up since then. 

Sweet words and longing promises meant nothing to her.

And everything new she learned about him just proved her point.

Her eyes moved up his face and locked into his gaze, he bent down, brushing her nose against his before she jerked back with a gasp. 

“No.” She said sharply.

“Shit, I’m sor—I didn’t mean that.” He said just as quickly. 

She licked her lips and shook her head, “It’s fine, I just think everything is just too much right now. I don’t…I don’t feel that way about you. I'm not going to take you back.”

“Right.” He agreed with a gulp. “I didn't mean to push you.”

“I didn’t think you were. I just don’t think it’s the best idea.” She said, looking away. 

He smiled slightly, “Kissing you is always the best idea.”

She frowned, “Not anymore, Jae.”

He took the glass away from her and changed the subject, “Are you okay?”

Suddenly it felt wrong being here and anger began licking at her. Memories of Mark's broken confession played in her mind and seeing Jaebum smile pissed her off. To her, Jaebum might be her asshole ex who still loved her but to Mark, he was so much worse. 

Even though she was mad at Mark, she felt guilt flood her stomach. The guilt of sitting with his enemy after running away from him. No matter what, she didn't ever want to be another person who betrayed Mark, "I know what you did."

"What are you talking about?" He asked, confused.

"When you and Mark were in DS together. I know how you treated him." She whispered, "I know how you screwed him over and what happened in The Bunker."

"Seo, I _—"_

"I already know how hard it probably was to be a kid in a gang but fuck Jaebum, you haven't changed much, have you? When did using people become so easy to you? Mark didn't deserve that. Especially when you made him go back in that room to rescue me." It seemed her trail of thought derailed because her eyes melted with longing and a sheen of tears, "Mark _—_ Mark is...I don't think I'm mad at Mark anymore."

She didn’t say anything else and just reached for her glass again, finishing it off in one gulp. He sighed at how small and guilt-ridden her voice was and pretended he didn't hear her, “You’ll land on your feet, Seo. You’re too good for this world not to.”

\-----

“Where is she?” Mark snapped, charging at Jaebum. 

He held his hands out, stopping him, “In my office, she’s fine but a little tipsy, I didn’t want to leave her alone in a cab and I’ve had a drink myself or else I would’ve driven her myself.”

“I’ll go get her.”

Jaebum yanked Mark back with a dirty glare, “You don't get to act like her hero when you're part of the reason she's so messed up. Her father? She already had no expectations of him. But you were different. For some reason she trusted you. She hates you now and with good reason.” 

“She must really hate me a lot if she’s willing to come see _you_.” Mark fired back.

Jaebum shook his head, “You and your little Boss were out of line letting her get fired. He used her, put her through hell, and then let her take the fall. That’s sick.”

“I’m sorry, who exactly put her through hell? Because the last time I was here, she was being held captive and tortured because of you.” Mark boomed.

Jaebum scoffed. “Well, you and her father are no better. You should’ve gotten someone to stop her company from doing that to her. I know you all have the resources. It was selfish not to.”

“I don’t call the shots.” Mark bit out. 

He smirked, “You can’t hide behind that excuse forever, Mark. I know you better than that, start fucking standing up for yourself instead of sitting by and letting some old man make the decisions.”

Mark ground his teeth, “Shut up. You wouldn’t get it.” He'd never get how much Mark cared for Heiran. How panicked and distraught he was when she stormed out, terrified that something bad was going to happen to her. The thought of her in danger made the bottom of his stomach fall out and it was a shame how accustomed he was to that feeling ever since he had known her.

Jaebum shook his head, “This is why I don’t understand why she’s so hell-bent on getting you to protect her when you can’t really do anything for her. You just say nothing, do nothing, while her father hurts her over and over again. You don’t even know what he’s capable of.”

“Neither do you.” Mark seethed before rushing past Jaebum and taking the stairs two steps at a time. He went directly to his office and found Heiran pouring herself another glass while leaning against Jaebum’s desk.

Fuck, he loved seeing her next to a big powerful table, like she could rule the world if she wanted. 

“You’re day drinking.”

Her eyes darted to him and he could see the kaleidoscope of emotions hit her face, the happiness, the anger, the guilt, and finally, the sadness. “I earned it.”

“It smells expensive.” He mused, gravitating towards her. 

She shrugged, downing the glass, “I wouldn’t know. It’s Jaebum’s.”

“Surprised you came to him.” 

She stared at her feet, "So am I. It was a mistake.”

He reached out to brush her hair out of her face, brow twisted as he stared at her. She met his gaze and unlike before, she softened and welcomed his gentle graze, “What do you think about when you do that?

“Do what?” He murmured. 

“When you touch me.”

He was silent and she wondered if she wasn’t going to get an answer when he finally spoke, “I don’t think about anything. That’s why I like doing it so much.” 

His tone was calm while curling her hair behind her ear, his touch was so heartbreakingly gentle that it made her want to forget any remaining hurt she felt.

“What about when you kiss me?”

His jaw tensed and she knew how much it stressed him out whenever he thought about it and how he couldn’t do it anymore.

“You.” He said firmly. “I think about you and how you feel and how I don’t want any other person but you.”

Her lips parted in awe as she looked up at him, gaze melting. His lips turned down as he scanned her face, “Please don’t do that.”

“Do what?” She asked innocently.

“Don’t look at me like you want me to kiss you. You’re pissed at me.” He grumbled.

She tilted her head, her eyes burning with new anger, “Kiss me.”

“No.” He fired back, “You’re mad, you’re trying to make a point. Don’t do this.”

She glared, “I want you. Kiss me. Do all the awful things that you try so hard to shield me from because you’re a big bad criminal who doesn’t want to taint the pretty innocent flower.”

He laughed dryly, “You know that I don’t see you like that.”

“Look at you.” She taunted breathily, “You’re an utter absolute gentleman. You act like you’re bad, dangerous and scary but you’re just a sweet little boy. That’s why I’m standing here, telling you I want you but you’d never ever touc-“

RRRIIIPPPPP

Her gasp was loud and her breath was stolen from her. Mark stared at the shreds of ripped silk in his hands with almost a sense of self loathing. His eyes trailed up over her blouse that was hanging off her shoulders, the buttons had flown across with room with his sanity. She stepped towards him and he immediately retreated. He clenched his jaw, shutting his eyes for a dreadfully silent minute.

“I want you every waking second of my life, duchess.” He hissed out, “I think about you when I’m alone and when I’m around other people. I think about you when I touch myself. I think about you until I can’t think of anything else. Hell, I don’t just think about you. I _fantasize_ about you.”

Heiran rocked on her heels as Mark shrugged off his jacket and slid it over her shoulders, zipping it up to cover up what the ripped blouse couldn’t. “You probably say that to all your girls.”

He smiled weakly, “I don’t have girls. I have you.”

“Then why…”

“Because everything you said to me was true. I hurt you, my job takes from you and gives you nothing in return. You’ve made your point.” He said quietly. “I’ll try to make it better the best I can.”

Jaebum entered the room just as Mark stepped back. Mark smiled sadly and took her hand, “So, maybe I am a gentleman. I’ll buy you another shirt. Now, let me take you home.”

Heiran was in a daze as he followed Mark out of the room, pausing to say her byes to Jaebum who could only watch helplessly as the woman who wore his ring was escorted out by a man he could never compete with.

\-----

Heiran called Mark the next morning with a light hangover and regret heavy in her heart.

Thank god Lucy managed to sleep through all of it.

“Headache?” He said when he answered.

“I’m sorry.” She replied.

He sighed, “You have nothing you apologize for. You had every right.”

“I know I did. But I was angrier at my father, you got the brunt of that.” She admitted. 

“I don’t know, duchess. I think you meant what you said, but now you think that I’d hold it against you. I won’t. You’re right. It’s always been selfish of me to want you. I knew that. I knew that you’d always be the one to give more and that isn’t fair to you. I’m sorry you lost your job, I’ll make it up to you myself. I’m sure your father will too, but I’ll do it on my own too.” He said.

She blinked back tears, “Okay. Make it up to me.”

“You’ll let me?” He asked, almost surprised.

She nodded even if he couldn’t see her. Jaebum was right, she could either cut Mark out despite how much she liked having him around, or she could be mad but let him fix it. She spent too much of her life believing that people couldn’t fix their mistakes, but she wanted to be wrong at least in regard to Mark. Because the truth was that she couldn't lose him. She didn't want to lose him. Not yet. “I’ll let you and only you, but on one condition.”

“What is it?” He asked.

She took a deep breath, “I don’t…know what this is. Me and you. And honestly, ever since that night, I’ve been terrified to try and figure it out. But can you just _stop_ talking about us as if we’re doomed? As if we’d never make whatever this is last between us?”

“Duchess.” He prompted sadly.

“No.” She breathed, “You started this so you have to see it through. Until we figure out what we really want out of this and how much we want it, can you _please_ stop looking at me like we're star crossed lovers?”

He let out a deep breath and she wondered where he was right now because she wanted him in front of her, “It might be harder for me than it would be for you to not be so nihilistic. Watching you get hurt because of me isn't easy." 

“I know.” She admitted.

But he caved, “I won’t talk about us like that. Doesn’t mean I don’t still have my reservations. I’ll just keep those thoughts to myself. Deal?”

It wasn't the agreement she wanted, he could talk his way out of a murder charge, but she'd take it. It was more than he would've given her when they first met.

“Deal.” She said with a smile. "And I'm sorry I went to Jaebum yesterday.

He grunted, "Don't apologize for that. You don't have to be mad at him on my behalf. I'm not going to isolate you from the few people who know the truth about what you're going through right now."

"Mark?" She called out weakly. 

"Hm?"

"I didn't mean it...when I said I hated you."

His voice came out warmer than she had ever heard but when she heard a touch of relief in his voice she wondered if he was lying just a bit, "I know, duchess."

Heiran hung up just as her front gate rang. She glanced at the delivery truck by her gate and buzzed them in. She watched the truck pull up, the driver hop out before dropping a package off.

Once he drove off and the gates closed, she opened her door and found a thin package addressed to her. She opened it up on her kitchen counter and smiled, her fingers running over the rich silver silk of a Dolce & Gabbana blouse.

Lifting the invoice, she found a small note attached to the slip. 

_Always looked good in silk — Mark_

\-----

“Hey, Jackson said Heiran was here a few days ago, looked pissed. Everything okay?” Jinyoung asked as Mark strolled in. 

“She got fired.” Mark said stiffly.

Jinyoung made a face, “Shit, I thought she’d be okay and find a way to work it out.”

“Yeah, I might call around, see if I could get someone to interview her. Lots of business people come to the bar, might get Jae to help too, it won’t be as sketchy as if her dad got involved.” He explained. 

Jinyoung quirked a brow, “Sure, I could look into some companies looking for VPs. Might be hard without her company pulling strings. But it’s a start. That’s nice of you to help her.”

“Yeah, I guess. Jinyoung, can I ask you a question? Like a personal one?” Mark asked.

Jinyoung shrugged, “Sure, what’s up?”

“How do you know when you’re in love?”

“Fuck me.” Jinyoung breathed, “Gonna be honest, not what I thought you’d ask.”

Mark chewed on his lip, “Help me.”

“I don’t know, Mark. Love means different things to different people. It’s a feeling, I mean, how would you describe feeling happy? It’s not easy.” Jinyoung said.

Mark narrowed his eyes, “Or is it because you just don’t know?”

“Wow, you basically come to me for free therapy, don’t be an ass.” Jinyoung snarked.

Mark sighed, “Fine, sorry, I just…don’t know how to identify it.”

“I guess when you care for someone to the point where their happiness means more to you that yours or their presence makes everything better, or they’re the first and sometimes the only person you want to be around. Or you feel safe enough with that person that you want to share everything with them. I don’t know, it’s all that stuff. It’s that warm gooey feeling you get that makes you feel good and scared all at the same time.” Jinyoung explained. 

Mark nodded slowly, “I guess that makes sense.”

“I feel like I know the answer but why are you asking, Mark?” Jinyoung asked pensively. 

Mark glanced at his phone, seeing a text from Heiran complaining of being bored and struggling in her job search. 

“Huh? Oh, I was just curious.”

Jinyoung snorted, “No, curiosity is when you google _how do jellyfish breathe underwater_. This isn’t curiosity.”

“Sure it is. It’s like when you want to find out what the symptoms of a cold are so you know if you have one.” Mark reasoned. 

Jinyoung smiled, “Right, but you only bother to research the symptoms if you feel you might already have them. So wanting to know the symptoms of love is because you think you might b—”

“Enough.” Mark grumbled, “It’s just morbid curiosity, it doesn’t mean anything. Just been doing some thinking.”

“And…” Jinyoung prompted with a sneaky grin.

Mark rolled his eyes, “Results are inconclusive.”


	25. Twentyfifth

Another job interview, another change in the interviewer’s face when they realized she was _The_ Seo Heiran. The same Seo Heiran who lost millions of dollars for her last employer. The same one that might have a lawsuit slapped on her any minute now. The same one who had allegations of negligence levied against her. She had a scarlet letter on her, she was forever tainted.

The rest of the interview would be rushed and disingenuous. She knew the minute she walked out of the door, her resume would be tossed in the trash. 

It was exhausting and frankly, a waste of expensive makeup. She walked up her drive way, feet sore in her Manolo heels and her face feeling heavy under layers of high-end foundation and concealer, anything to hide the purplish bags under her eyes. 

It had taken her a few days of laying lifelessly in bed before she had the energy to get dressed and if it wasn’t for this interview, she wouldn’t have left home.

Shoving the door open, she stepped into her house, scanning the living room. She kicked her heels off padding over to her couch when she heard Lucy’s giggles. Her feet rooting to the ground when she took in the sight in front of her. 

Mark was shirtless, passed out on his stomach on the couch. Lucy was sitting on the floor in front of him, dutifully filling in the outlines of his tattoos with a set of cheap watercolours. Paint streaked her round cheeks as she gripped the brush tightly in her fist. 

“Mom!”

Heiran held her finger to her lips, hushing her to avoid waking up Mark before crouching down next to her to wipe at her cheeks. “Sunshine, what are you doing? You shouldn’t paint on Mark, sweetie. You need to ask for permission first.”

“She did.”

Heiran turned to see Mark blinking heavily at her, “She asked, I said yes but I fell asleep after a while.”

Heiran gulped, her eyes moving from the sleepiness under his lashes to the red flush on his chest as he sat up, creases from the couch pressed into his skin. She skimmed her eyes over his arms where his typical black tattoos were shaded with new colours. 

“Lucy, go wash up, okay?” She cooed. 

Her daughter nodded before rushing up the stairs. Heiran watched Mark from the ground before he scooted over and patted the spot beside him. She hesitated, it felt strange falling back into a routine with Mark. The things she had said to him in anger still hung heavily in her mind, even though he never brought it up. He still showed up at her house, still offered her anything she needed. 

She was mad, resentful, furious and largely unprepared to deal face to face with the feelings she felt for him when she yelled at him. But no matter how mad her father made her, at the end of the day, there was nowhere else she’d rather be than with Lucy and Mark. 

Heiran had given up trying to understand what she felt or why she felt it. 

It was there, in her heart, like the small embers of a fire. With enough water, you could douse it forever but with a strong enough gust of wind, it could burn a forest down.

Should he decide to help her turn the world to flames, she’d deal with it then.

“Thanks for watching her.” Heiran murmured, as she sat down next to him, eyeing the patches of dried paint. It was sweet, seeing a man so intimidating, bend his will for her daughter. 

“Yeah, don’t worry.” He said, his lips hitching as he skimmed the familiar silk shirt that hung off her shoulders. The same shirt he had stared at on his laptop for 2 hours before deciding to buy it and ship it to her.

He was right. It did look good on her.

Mark instinctively shifted away from her, giving her room on the couch so that they weren't pressed too close together. Heiran noticed right away, it was hard not to. She and Mark always orbited around each other, but unlike the actual planets, they touched more frequently. It was always his hand grazing some part of her or her standing too close to him. 

So she felt the distance.

“Tired?” He asked, his eyes pinned straight forward, away from her face. 

She stared at his profile, her eyes judging and inspecting his face before testing out her theory. 

“Yeah, a little bit.” She said, reposition her legs so that she was a fraction of an inch closer to him. 

And like clockwork, he angled his body away from her. 

Heiran wasn’t sure if she was supposed to be hurt or offended because at that moment, she was feeling a little bit of both. Until she remembered the fight they had. One that she was _sure_ she had apologized for and so had he. For fuck’s sake, he bought her a designer shirt that cost more than some people’s rent. 

She figured the water was way under the bridge by this point. 

There were only two people that Heiran held grudges against, her father and Jaebum. But even Jaebum was making her soften a bit. She just wasn’t the type to let anger hover over her. Her anger was often like a sugar high, it would come at you full force before petering out into lethargic crash. 

The crash always made her feel the worst about herself. 

Heiran knew that she and Mark had butt heads before and that they had lashed out at each other, her more than him. But there was rarely ever any residual bad feelings. 

But this time must be different. 

He must feel _really_ guilty. 

“Stop treating me like a bomb ready to go off. Just because I yelled at you before doesn’t mean that I’m going to blow up again. I said my piece to you, we talked about it, made amends and so we should move on. I’m not the type to hang onto things once it’s been settled.”

“I’m supposed to be making it up to you.” He said carefully. 

She leaned back against the couch and snorted, “Yeah, I know and trust me, I’m still waiting, this shirt, although gorgeous, is not enough for me, sir, but that doesn’t mean you have to treat me differently.”

Mark hesitated, eyeing her carefully before he moved to press his thigh flush against hers. 

Ah, balance was restored.

He hummed as he sank into the couch, “How did the interview go?”

“I don’t want to talk about it.” She muttered. 

He watched the way her eyes drooped shut, knowing that this was just one of a long line of interviews that went wrong. “Look, I don’t know how you’d feel about this…”

She pulled her gaze to him, “What?”

“I know some people, not bad people, but people who could maybe help you. It’s the same people who helped me with the bar.” He said softly, “If you’re okay with it, I could set up a meeting. It could help with your job search or other options.”

Heiran opened her eyes, watching Mark skeptically, “I don’t know…”

“Think about it.” He said softly, “Maybe the guy I know has contacts that could give you a job or just advice or someone to talk to.”

Heiran’s eyes flickered over his, “Does this guy know what you do?”

“Not really, but he knew that I’m into shady shit and wanted the bar to be cleaner than the rest of my life.”

“Right. I’ll sleep on it.” She mumbled. “Why do you even have the bar? What did you want out of it?”

“The money that goes in and out of that bar is clean. It’s completely untouched by GOT7 except for me and Jae.”

“Why does it matter if it’s clean and untouched?” 

He knew that she was asking the question for a reason, he could see it in her eyes. He spent too much time not putting words to his actions. He was strategic but sometimes it was easier to keep that strategy in his head and out of his mouth. 

“I might not want to be in this life forever.” He said slowly, “If I choose to leave, I’ll have a safety net.”

She watched him carefully, “This life is everything to you. It saved you from DS. Your best friend works for GOT7 and the others are from allied gangs. Would you really ever leave?”

“If I had a good enough reason, sure.” He fired back, not breaking eye-contact. 

Her throat felt tight, “You’re loyal to the bone.”

“I am. But I’m more loyal to myself. I owe GOT7 a lot but I know I paid my dues. I stay because I don’t need to leave.” He admitted. “That could change."

She felt her breathing constrict in her lungs just as Lucy’s footsteps thundered back down the stairs. “I’m done!”

Heiran pulled her legs off of Mark and watched Lucy moved her paints away and wiggle her between the two of them.

Mark reached for his shirt and pulled it over his head. Heiran began combing Lucy’s fingers with her fingers before splitting her hair and starting to braid half. Mark handed Lucy the remote, letting her flip through the channels before threading his fingers through the other hand of her hair. 

Heiran’s fingers stilled and watched him expertly braid her hair, “How on earth…?”

“Used to do it on rope.” He replied.

She smiled lightly before continuing, “They’re looking for my replacement at work.”

“They’ll just hire someone who knows how to say yes to everything they want. They want to cover their as—behinds, and they want a warm body to do it.” He smarted. 

“Probably.” She muttered. 

Mark’s fingers slowed, “Have you spoken to Jaebum?”

Lucy paused and glanced up at Mark before facing the TV again. He winced and shot Heiran a look before finishing Lucy’s hair and turning to the TV as well. 

Heiran just sighed, “Not really. We sometimes text or he calls to tell me about paperwork I need to fill but that’s basically it.”

Mark nodded, “That doesn’t sound too bad.”

“Sometimes it’s hard to hate him.” She admitted quietly. 

Mark stilled, mulling over the words, “I don’t think that’s something I relate to, I have to say.”

“I don’t have feelings for him but I can’t just pretend he doesn’t exist. It’s not as easy as I thought. Especially because of this.” She muttered, flashing him the ring on her finger. 

He frowned, “Why are you telling me this?”

“I don’t know. I feel like I need to remind you that just because I’m talking to him, doesn’t mean that anything’s changed. There’s a lot of history but my mind is made up.”

“I don’t get jealous.” He fired back. “You don’t need to walk on eggshells around me when it comes to him.”

She chuckled and he forced a questioning gaze at her. She shook her head, “Remember when I said you’re my healthiest relationship?”

“Yeah.”

“This is the reason why.”

He watched her, how her eyes seemed to be slowly burning out, the spark that he had grown to love fuelling was fading. Her lips barely twitched upward and there was something in the way she moved, the way she walked that lacked purpose. “How are you doing?”

“I’m happy with my life, you know, minus Jaebum and my dad and the crime that’s taken over it, I was happy with my job, my daughter, my friends, it was enough. I wasn’t greedy for more. People would always talk to me like I missing something though. Like I wouldn’t be complete unless I had a husband or boyfriend. Frankly, I don’t think I need one. I’m happy where I am. I can handle my life, I’m strong enough to be a mom and a dad to Lucy and a husband and a wife to myself.”

“Okay.”

She gulped and he froze when tears filled her eyes. Not angry tears that he was used to seeing but pure sadness and exhaustion, “But sometimes I want it. I want to be greedy for more. I want a husband or a partner that could see when I need help, that could tell when I need to hear something and say it without me asking for it. I want someone to help pick up the slack when I lose my fucking job. I don’t want to worry about how long I have until I start missing bill payments alone.”

“You have a husband.” Mark muttered quietly.

She scoffed, sniffling. She blinked her tears back and shook her head, “No, I want a real husband. Someone I _want_ to help me. Someone who I don’t feel weak when he carries some of the weight or tells me that everything will be okay. Someone who tells me that they’re proud of everything I’ve done for Lucy. Sometimes, not always, I miss not being alone.”

“I’m sorry you’re going through this.” He said so earnestly that it nearly brought the tears back to her eyes, “If it’s any consolation, I think you’re phenomenal. I could never do or be what you do for Lucy. You’re a gold standard for parenting. You’re also doing your best, that’s all anyone will ask of you. Sometimes your best isn’t enough, sometimes life makes it hard but you’re _you._ You’re smart, capable, quick on your feet. If you keep doing your best, things will work out.”

She sank and glanced at Lucy whose eyes were blinking heavily, “Yeah?”

“And, I know I said I’d drop it, but Jaebum is your husband now, why not…use him? You don’t have to have a marriage but maybe try to make the most of it when you’re feeling alone.” Mark said, he didn’t bother trying to mask the indifference in his voice. 

“But—“

“You said sometimes it’s hard to hate him.” Mark prompted.

She scrunched her face up in response, “Doesn’t matter how hard it is for me to hate him, I’ll never forgive him for what he did to you. Doesn’t matter how hard his life was, he made yours harder out of greed. I’m not okay with that.”

“That’s not your grudge to hold.”

She shrugged, “I can multi-task. I have a lot of free time now.”

He gave her a weak smile that dropped as quickly as he forced it up, “I wish I didn’t tell you about that.”

“I’m sorry I brought it up.” She said softly.

He shook his head, “That’s not why I regret it.”

“Then?”

“It’s the past. I like to leave it in the past.”

Heiran chuckled, “That’s impossible.”

He frowned, “What?”

“You can’t leave things in the past. They won’t ever stay there. They come back at the most inopportune moments. That’s how it works.” She explained.

He wasn't convinced, “It’s not your job to try to heal my wounds. I’m an adult, I need to learn to deal with shi—business, myself.”

Her smile grew as she leaned her head back against the couch, “God, I like you a lot.”

Mark’s eyes widened. He couldn’t understand her. She made no sense to him sometimes. “Why?”

“I don’t know, I just do.” She did know. 

The truth was that it was unbelievably attractive to her that Mark didn’t want to unload his emotional trauma on her with the expectation that she’d untangle and fix it for him. He didn’t go to women assuming they’d want to put him back together. He never wanted his role in her life to be to give her more problems than solutions. 

But knowing this, only made her want to help all the more. 

“Don’t regret telling me things, Mark. Because I don’t regret telling you things about me.”

He just stared, like she was a Rubik’s cube that he could solve with his eyes alone.

“I uh—asked to stop getting paid.”

Heiran stared silently at the ceiling, “Mark.”

“Wait, let me rephrase. I asked to stop getting paid from the money we got cleaned by you. Your dad doesn’t know. He’d think I was trying to undermine him or something. I just asked that it come from some of our other accounts.”

She turned to look at him, “Does that mean it’s dirty?”

“No, you’re not the only way we clean our money. You were just the biggest and fastest way.” He assured.

She chewed on her lip, “So…you’ll be okay?”

“I will. It’ll just take longer for the money to get to me, but my bills will still be paid on time.” He said simply.

She scrunched her nose up, “You didn’t need to do that. What’s done is done.”

“I don’t think that’s enough for me anymore.” He muttered.

She smiled slightly, “Well, thank you then. Where will you clean the money now?”

He shrugged, “Not sure, SmartLogic will probably claim bankruptcy and close down. And I’m sure we have people working on a backup to funnel money just as efficiently as we did with you.”

She nodded while chewing on her lip, “We haven’t really had any threats against me recently, have we? Things have been quiet.”

“Maybe Jaebum got them to back down. The marriage must’ve worked.” He wondered.

She hummed and moved her attention back to the tv. They sat like that for an hour, silently staring at whatever show Lucy had left on. It wasn’t until Mark felt a weight on his arm did he realize that Lucy had fallen asleep. 

He was about to tell Heiran that maybe they should call it a night when he noticed her head bobbing. Sighing, he wiggled the remote out of Lucy’s hand and turned off the tv before carefully lifting Lucy up into his arms. 

Walking on the balls of his feet, he carried her up to her room, gently tucking her in under her soft pink blankets. He clicked the switch on the night light that was plugged in, the same one that Lucy demanded that she didn’t need. But whenever he’d walk past her room, he’d see the glow. 

He watched the light play off her face. Children were so pure, it was a crime that the world made sure to find ways to ruin them. He patted the top of her head, with a silent promise. Until she was off to college, he’d have his eye on her, he’d watch her and make sure nothing ever bad happened to her. Even when he wasn’t a part of her or Heiran’s life anymore.

After making sure she was comfortable, he went back downstairs to deal with the second baby in the house. Standing in front of her, he reached a hand out and tenderly skimmed along her cheek before lifting her up into his arms, curling her against his chest. 

“I know you’re awake.” He murmured when he was halfway up the stairs. 

She huffed, her eyes fluttering open but she didn’t bother lifting her head from his collar, instead she tucked her face into the crook of his and took a deep breath. It made pebbles on his skin rise. He smelled like peach and cinnamon, much sweeter than she’d expect from him, “How’d you know?”

“Your breathing wasn’t even.” He replied as he carried her up the rest of the stairs. 

“Why’d you still carry me?” She asked. 

He nudged her door open with his foot, “Because you wanted me to, you big baby.”

She didn’t fight back as he made a show of laying her down in bed and pulling the covers up to her chin and patting her halfheartedly on the head. She let out a huff of a laugh and hummed, snuggling under the covers as Mark moved into the bathroom. 

He shuffled through her counter, looking from something to clean the makeup off her face. He had sat on the edge of the bathtub countless times watching Heiran’s painstakingly complex skincare routine before bed. But all of these products were starting to look and sound the same as he read each label. 

But his laser focus was suddenly ripped away when his eyes landed on an old picture, the corners folded and creased. It was slid into the edge of the bathroom mirror and Mark wondered why he had never noticed it before. Maybe it was because every time he was in her bathroom, he was too busy staring at her. 

He pulled the picture out of the wedged corner and held it up to his face. His lips twitched, realization dawning on him. The shock on his face remained as he dug his phone out to make sure to take about 10 pictures before finally speaking up. 

“What the hell is this?”

Heiran was halfway to dream land, cozy and snuggled up when she heard him. The amusement and absolute bafflement in his voice had her eyes snapping open. Mark was in her bathroom, what on earth would he have found to sa—

No!

“Wait! Stop!” She shouted, ripping the blankets off of her to run into her bathroom. She launched at Mark, her hands reaching for the photo in his hand but he just held it up over his head, his head tilting back to get a better look. 

She tried jumping to grab the picture but her fingers barely grazed it, “Give it back!”

If she wasn’t so mortified, she might’ve been blinded by the giddy smile beaming across his face as he pushed himself up on his toes to hold the picture even further out of her reach. “I’m looking at it, and I know what I’m seeing but it’s like my brain isn’t putting this together. I mean, you have the sash and everything.”

“Mark!” She shrieked, her face heating up. 

He laughed, loud and unabashed and this time, even her searing humiliation couldn’t stop her from staring at his face in awe. Mark’s eyes were still on the photo but his other hand gripped her waist, keeping her balanced. 

Heiran gulped when he squeezed her side and finally his gaze dropped to hers, “Seo Heiran, correct me if I’m wrong, but _you_ were a pageant girl.”

She snapped out of her daze and scoffed, finally grabbing the picture and snatching it out of his slackened grip. “I was _not_ a pageant girl.”

He smirked, towering over her to look down at the picture. It was Heiran, couldn’t be older than 16 or 17 with perfectly coiffed hair, a flawless candy sweet smile, bring red lipstick and a flowy white dress with a sweetheart neckline. 

And the piece de resistance? 

The satin sash draped across her chest. 

“I think that picture begs to differ, duchess.” He mused, his eyes glittering mischievously. 

She rolled her eyes and spun around stalking out of the bathroom but he was hot on her heels, “It was a dare. Someone dared me to join the pageant if I won they'd buy me free lunch for a year. And it was the teen circuit.” 

“Wow.” Mark said in faux admiration, watching as she buried the photo into a drawer oblivious to the copies already in his phone, “I can’t believe I’m in the presence of Miss. Teen Seoul.”

She spun on her heel and glared before mumbling under her breath. He raised a brow and walked up to her, “What was that?”

“I didn’t win!” She barked, her cheeks burning.

His smile just grew before his lips pursed into an over-exaggerated pout. He cupped her cheek, his thumb stroking her skin more tenderly than his teasing tone, “Aww, is someone still a sore loser?”

She smacked his hand away, “I came in second, I’ll have you know and I would’ve won if I didn’t drop that damn bat—uh never mind.”

“No way.” Mark breathed out, “Baton twirling? Duchess, you’re killing me. I didn’t know you were so cute. You were a goddamn gold star, weren’t you? Well, I guess silver star.”

She groaned and stomped over to the bed angrily getting under the covers, huffing and hawing in a way that made him smile. “Shut up!”

“Do you have pictures from the bathing suit round?”

“Get out!”

\-----

"Something's wrong." 

Yugyeom quickly exited the Solitare window on his computer and looked over at the detective, "What is?"

"Our theory. About the offshore accounts that GOT7 and DS uses. I was running it by some finance guys and they said it makes sense but these suits are only thinking about blue-collar money laundering. Criminals who need to buy guns and funnel money into multiple ally gangs operate differently. A system like that would be too complicated and would require opening and maintaining too many accounts. Gangs want something simple but effective." The detective explained. "They might use offshore accounts for personal funds but not operating funds."

Yugyeom tried to bite back his yawn. When was this detective going to remember that he was a profiler and not another detective to run theories by. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

"So profiler genius, give me something!" 

Yugyeom gaped at him, "Give you what? You want me to profile a bunch of foreign bank accounts?"

"No, using what we know about how methodically GOT7 and DS operates, what would someone with their MO try to clean and hide money? Give me ideas." He negged. 

Yugyeom frowned and ran his fingers through his hair, "Well, they probably want complete control and access of the money. They wouldn't want to rely on a third party but they also wouldn't want to put themselves out in the open where anyone could identify and attack them."

"So? What options does that leave us with?"

Yugyeom chewed on the inside of his lip, "They'd need a front, something that they control but not something that they entirely own or else they'd risk sinking with the ship if things go wrong. They'd want to be able to disappear and put the onus on someone else."

"Okay...so what would that even look like?" The detective asked frustratedly.

Yugeyom could feel his brain churning, finally being able to do what he was a pro at, "It would have to be a perfect set of circumstance and a carefully constructed plan. They'd probably go after some sort of complex, multinational business. Something with a lot of people in charge, a lot of big players. But one of the players would be a plant. One of their own guys who would help them funnel money in and out through the company. Send dirty money into the company through their guy and have him replace it with the company's clean money."

"So if the IRS or some law enforcement goes snooping, they're making it look like this big company is the one handling dirty money and then their guy can just vanish leaving the company to clean up the mess while the gangs have their hands on clean money. That's good." The detective said excitedly.

But Yugyeom was skeptical, "But it's a very delicate dance. They need to target a company that has enough money to play with and where moving big amounts of money won't raise flags. Not to mention it'll probably take more than just one guy to pull off. I have no idea how they'd do it without messing up or being undetected for so long. Not to mention how they'd even gain entry into the company."

"Trust me, kid, they may seem like criminals, but the way these gangs move nowadays, they're like their own miniature governments. You have no idea what they're capable of pulling off."

\-----

Heiran stormed through Lucy’s school, her heels clicking as she moved quickly down the hallways. There were hundreds of ways for her to start her evening, but getting a call from Lucy’s principal, telling her that she needed to come down to discuss an ‘incident’ was not one of those ways.

She could feel her heart pounding as she walked into the office and met the gaze of the secretary. 

“Hi there, can I h—“

“I’m Lucy’s mother, I was called down.” She said quickly. 

The secretary typed on her computer before nodding, “Yes, she’s waiting for you, you can head in. Your h—“

She didn’t let the woman finish and just pivoted on her heel straight to the thick wooden door. Heiran swung the door open, not bothering to knock, “Hi, I’m so sorry, I tried to get here as fast as I could. I—Jaebum?”

She gaped at him as he stood from his seat across from the Principal, “Hey…uh, baby.”

“Mrs. Seo. Thank you so much for joining us. I was just talking to your husband but I wanted to wait until you got here before we discussed the reason I called you here.” She said, hand outstretched. 

Heiran was in a daze as she returned the handshake, her eyes solely on Jaebum who refused to meet her gaze, “Where’s Lucy? Is she okay?”

“Yes, she is, she’s currently in her classroom with her teacher. Please, take a seat.”

Heiran still felt her brain struggle to catch up as she sat down in the leather chair, “What’s going on?”

“As I mentioned on the phone, there was a little incident during evening recess. It seems that Lucy kicked a soccer ball at another student’s head.” She explained. 

Heiran’s jaw dropped, “Well, surely it was an accident. She probably just aimed wrong.”

“Yes, that’s what I first thought, but after speaking to the supervising teacher, after the ball hit the boy, she said that she would, and I quote, ‘get her dad to come back and pay the boy a visit like last time.’ As you can see, it sounded a bit like a threat.” She said with an uneasy smile. 

Heiran’s eyes shot to Jaebum who looked equally surprised. “I have no idea what she’s talking about. I never paid any kid a visit.”

“I’m sure it’s a misunderstanding but the boy’s mother is upset and she wants an apology. I’ll bring Lucy and the other family in. Maybe we can all just sit down and have a conversation, okay?”

Heiran gulped and nodded, “Okay, I guess.” 

The principal smiled, probably happy she was being so agreeable and left to gather everyone. The minute they were alone, Heiran turned to Jaebum, “What are you doing here?”

“I’m sorry, I filled out a bunch of different forms once we got married, one of them might’ve been for Lucy’s emergency contact. I just filled out all the forms without really reading it. I was just as confused when they called me.” He said defensively. 

Heiran chewed on her lip in worry, “Okay…but what about all that stuff with the soccer ball? Did you tell her that you’d rough people up for her or something?”

“Are you hearing yourself? I can’t get within 100 feet of Lucy before she runs away. When would I have said anything to her?” He muttered back. 

She shook her head, “It doesn’t make sense. She wouldn’t just hurt someone for no reason.”

“So there must be a reason.” He whispered. He reached over and cautiously touched her hand, “I’m sorry, I wouldn’t have come if I knew what this was about. I thought they called me because something happened to you two.”

Heiran rubbed her forehead, “It’s fine, I just—“

“Mom!” 

Heiran stood and turned to see Lucy running up to her, hugging her by the waist. Heiran smoothed her palm over the back of her head, “Hi, sunshine. Are you okay?”

“You should be asking if _my_ son is okay.” A shrill voice clipped. 

Heiran and Jaebum looked at the woman standing next to a little body holding an ice pack to the back of his head. 

“Why don’t we sit down?” The principal gently led. 

The woman stalked over and dropped in the chair with her son next to her, “I don’t think we even have to be here. It’s clear that child hurt my little angel and she deserves to be punished. I know that the school has a zero-tolerance policy against violence so I want that child kicked out.”

“That’s ridiculous.” Jaebum snorted. 

Heiran stiffened when the woman’s ice-cold glare fell on him, “Who are you?”

“This is Lucy’s father.” The principal said calmly. 

“What?”

Heiran gulped when both Lucy and the little boy stared at Jaebum in shock. She cleared her throat, “I think what he means is that we find it hard to believe Lucy would just hurt another student for no reason.”

“Excuse me?”

The principal waved in the teacher who had lingered by the door, “This is the teacher that was on duty during recess. As you can imagine, the parents are trying to make sense of what happened. Can you tell them what you saw?”

“Well, the boy and his friends kept tugging on Lucy’s hair, at first I thought that they were friends but she started yelling at them. The boys took off running and that’s when she kicked the ball.” 

Silence fell over the room as Heiran’s body tightened, her fingers curling into fists, “So, your _child_ was bullying my daughter?”

The woman looked flustered and her son looked equally embarrassed. “O-Of course not!”

She looked over at the little boy and tried to soften her glare, “How long have you picked on Lucy?”

He looked nervous, “Uh…”

“For months!” Lucy quipped. 

Heiran didn’t move her stare and just raised a singular eyebrow, “Interesting.”

“You have no proof!” The woman shrieked, “She’s just making that up to get out of trouble.”

Jaebum chuckled and looked up from his phone, “Really? Because I just looked up his Instagram, by the way, he’s ten and definitely doesn’t need social media. But he’s posted a bunch of pictures of Lucy making fun of her.”

Heiran’s eyes widened and she ripped the phone out of his hands before scrolling through the feed to see pictures of Lucy in class and on the playground. The insults weren’t particularly scathing but for a ten-year-old, they were cruel. 

When she started screenshotting the pictures, the mother sat up straighter, “Um…I’m sure this was all a misunder—“

“No, you don’t.” Heiran’s voice was frozen over as she stared at the principal down, “I have proof of months of bullying. Where was your zero-tolerance policy then?”

It was the principal who looked flustered now, her eyes darting back and forth, “Well, I mean, I’m sure if it was brought to our attention we would’ve acted on it immediately.”

“A bunch of these pictures were taken in the classroom or during their breaks. You're telling me that not a single teacher knew about it? So if we ask her teacher she won’t say anything?” Jaebum bit out. 

Heiran, emboldened by Jaebum’s catty tone, sat up straighter, “You know, school violence is a hot topic now. If I so much as _whisper_ ‘school violence’ and this school’s name to any reporter, you’ll be seeing your enrolment numbers drop faster than you can blink.” 

“I’m sure we can all come to a compromise.” She said quickly. 

Heiran laughed dryly and stood, “How about this for compromise? You get that kid to delete his Instagram account, you ensure no one ever touches my daughter again and you kick the actual bully out of this school.”

Before anyone could complain Heiran grabbed Lucy’s hand and tugged her to the door, “We’re leaving. If you can’t accept my terms, I’ll have no choice but to go to the press. I’ll wait to hear from you soon.” 

Jaebum watched Heiran disappear through the door in awe before snapping out of his trance and hurrying after her. He caught up with her in the hallway, her shoulders still stiff and her stare pinned to the doors. 

“Please don’t tell your other dad!”

Heiran froze midstep to see the boy running up to Lucy with terror in his eyes. She looked at Lucy who tucked herself behind Heiran’s legs. She glanced at Jaebum who was staring at the boy with a frown. 

“What are you talking about? Her other dad?” Heiran asked. 

The boy gulped and took a small step back, “I promise I’ll never pick on her if you tell him not to kill me. He told me not to hurt her again, please don’t tell him.”

Heiran was still confused, “What a—“

“Do you promise?” Lucy asked. 

The boy nodded and held his pinky out. Lucy eyed him wearily before reaching her hand out and wrapping her pinky around his, “Okay, I won’t.”

He let out a relieved sigh and bowed deeply before running back to his mother who was steaming at the end of the hall. The minute they rounded the corner, Heiran dropped to her knees, “Lucy, who was he talking about?”

Jaebum looked away, he had a feeling he knew exactly who would’ve seen a little kid getting picked on and decide to intervene. 

“Mark.” Lucy said brightly. “The first day he came to pick me up. He kicked a ball at him when he hurt my arm. He told him if he picked on me again, he’d be in trouble, I think.”

Heiran’s lips parted as she stared at Lucy, but before she could say anything, her little face crumpled. She leaned close and whispered in Heiran’s ear but it was loud enough for him to hear, “Why did she call Jaebum my dad?”

“She made a mistake.” Heiran said quickly. “You know who your real dad is, right sweetie?”

Lucy blinked and Heiran felt her heart tighten, there was no way that she actually forgot, “Lucy? I know Mark said he was your father at the zoo, but he was lying. You know he isn’t your real dad, right? You remember who he actually is, don’t you, sunshine?”

“Mom, why are you crying?” She whispered. 

Heiran felt her body shake and she heard Jaebum crouch down next to her, gently rubbing circles on her back, “You’re digging your nails into her arms, Seo.”

“Baby, sunshine, please tell me you remember your real dad. _Please_.” She begged desperately, tears slipping down her chin. 

Lucy looked alarmed but she finally nodded slowly, “I do, mom. I remember.” 

“And it’s not Jaebum or Mark, right?” Heiran pressed. 

Lucy nodded again, “I know, mom. I just called Mark my dad because that’s what he told the other moms when we went to the zoo. He said he had to lie so that he could come with me. I didn’t want to get him in trouble so I told the other kids he was my dad too.”

Heiran nodded and pulled her to her chest, “Okay, okay. That’s all I wanted to know, sunshine.”

Jaebum watched, his heart breaking as Heiran took sharp breaths, squeezing Lucy tight. He knew that this was a sore subject for her. When they had started dating, it had been hard for Heiran to bring him into Lucy’s life. She was worried that Lucy was young enough to think Jaebum was her father.

As willing as Jaebum was to step in and be a father, he knew that it was important to Heiran that Lucy know who her biological father was versus a potential step-father. 

He maneuvered his hand around so that he could wipe at her tears. A moment past before Lucy spoke against her mom’s shoulder. 

“Can we go home, now?”

\-----

There was tension in the house even though it was just her and Lucy. 

The girl was only 10 but it was like the two of them were walking on eggshells, refusing to address the elephant in the room. The one that they were so good at ignoring until Heiran’s minor breakdown.

Instead of playing or asking to watch tv, Lucy just ate dinner and quietly walked up the stairs and to her room. Heiran closed her eyes when she heard Lucy’s door gently shut and dug her fingers into the marble of the kitchen countertop. 

She hated this feeling. 

The one that threatened to drown her, to make her spiral and fall into a pit that no one could pull her out of. She felt worthless, hopeless, useless, a failure. She couldn’t tell that her breathing was starting to pick up, her steady exhales turning into desperate gasps as she squeezed tears back into her eyes. 

_I can’t do this._

_I don’t know how to do this._

Opening her eyes, she scrambled for her phone, thumbing through her contacts until she found Mark’s name. Her finger hovered and she wondered if it was cruel to call and ask him to help her. To hug her. To make this ugly, awful, pathetic feeling go away. 

It was self-sabotage, she thought. Knowing that if Mark walked into her house and if he touched her, all her problems would feel obsolete.

But still hesitating to hit call.

He wouldn’t even need to know what was wrong with her, he just always knew how to fix things. How to make things feel right. To make her feel confident in being able to deal with whatever scared her. 

Giving in, her thumb pressed call and it started ringing when the buzzer for her front gaze rang, signalling someone wanting to enter. Quickly ending the call, she wiped at her face and let out 3 long breaths before heading to the door to check the monitor. 

She wished it was Mark. 

She wished he just _knew_ that she needed him. 

But of course, the world didn’t work that way. 

If she needed someone, she’d have to start learning how to ask. 

Instead, she buzzed the gate open and watched Jaebum’s car pull into her driveway

\-----

“What’re you doing here?” She mumbled, watching Jaebum unpack a bunch of takeout on her counter.

He shrugged, “You seemed upset after Lucy’s school thing. I thought you two might need a pick me up. So I brought dinner.”

“We already ate Jae.” She blurted. Guilt gnawed at her when she saw his eye widen and his hands freeze over a box of rice. She didn’t know why her instinct whenever Jaebum did anything nice for her was to shut him down and make him feel bad. 

“Oh…” Jaebum stared at the food spread out on the table, “I could take it back or maybe you could save it for to—“

She reached out and gently placed a hand on his arm, “No, I-I’m sorry. I appreciate you coming all the way here and doing this.”

“Today was probably hard on you.” He said quietly.

Heiran shifted uncomfortably, she didn’t want people to feel sorry for her. “It is what it is.”

He stared at her, the Heiran he knew wouldn’t have deflected that instinctively. It was strange seeing her so withholding and distant. He’d never get used to it. And he hated the thought that he was responsible.

“Lucy, come downstairs!” Heiran called out before grabbing plates. 

Jaebum watched her float around the kitchen with fondness. It reminded him of when they lived together and how they could move around each other like they were dancing. They used to be so in sync. 

Jaebum was a man of very few regrets.

He did what he wanted, got what he wanted and went where he wanted.

But leaving Heiran, breaking up with her and blaming it on Lucy was the only thing he ever regretted in life.

What he felt with her he could never replicate.

But now, in her kitchen, they weren’t dancing around together, she was waltzing on her own. 

“You don’t wear the ring?” He asked.

Her eyes landed on his hand where the wedding band sat snugly on his finger. She shrugged, “Not at home. It feels weird when I’m alone.”

The sound of little bare feet padding down the stairs and down the hallway pulled both their gazes to the doorway where Lucy’s screeched to a halt. 

Her eyes were wide when they landed on Jaebum and almost as quickly she stared at the ground. 

“Hey, Luce.” He called softly. 

“Mom?” She asked quietly, her big worried eyes panicked. 

Heiran tried to put on her best smile, “Jaebum bought you some food. Do you wanna taste?”

She could see the confusion on her face, unsure with seeing Jaebum standing in the kitchen like this was 5 years ago. Lucy was gauging Heiran’s expression, trying to figure out what she was supposed to do or say. Not to mention, they just had dinner.

“Um…okay.” She took the plate from Heiran and sat at the dinner table, watching silently as Jaebum filled her plate with things she liked. 

“Thank you.” With a bow Lucy picked up a fork and poked at her food. 

Heiran couldn’t stop staring at Jaebum’s face, he didn’t look hurt or heartbroken but more affectionate. Kids grew fast, it must’ve been jarring to see her after 5 long years.

“She looks so big.” Jaebum murmured, “You did such a good job raising he—“

“Where did you go?" Lucy blurted, finally meeting Jaebum’s eyes.

Heiran froze, her eyes darting between the two. Even though Lucy was a child, sometimes Heiran got intimidated by the little girl when she had that dead set look in her eye.

“Mom never said why you left. She just said that you weren’t coming around anymore. That you and mom weren’t in love anymore. Where did you go?” She asked bluntly.

Heiran didn’t catch the hurt that flash through Jaebum’s eyes before he composed himself, “I left because I needed to grow up.”

Lucy frowned at the cryptic answer, “Huh? People don’t need to leave to grow up. They just grow up. You can grow up wherever you want. You could’ve grown up with us!”

“Lucy…” Heiran murmured.

“No, it’s…it’s okay. Well, Lucy, you’re right. I could’ve and I probably should’ve but I was scared. I was scared that growing up would mean hurting you and your mom. So, I left before I could.” He explained slowly, his tone gentle. 

Lucy said nothing and frowned, “But you still did. Especially mom.”

“Sunshine, how about we just eat, yeah?” Heiran prodded.

Jaebum’s shoulders sagged, “You’re right. I’m sorry Luce.”

“Now you’re back, why?” She interrogated. 

He twisted the ring on his finger, “I wanted to make it up to you and your mom.”

“But mom sleeps with Mark. She doesn’t need you anymore.” 

Heiran choked on her water, spilling it all over her lap as she slapped her hand over her chest, “Lucy Seo!? Why would you say that? I-I never—I wouldn’t—”

Lucy looked confused by her reaction, “I saw him leave your room in the morning that one day. You always sneak out of my room in the morning when you sleep in my bed with me when I have nightmares. Mark did the same thing for mom. She must’ve had nightmares and he slept with her to keep her safe. Mark always keeps us safe.”

Heiran could see Jaebum turn to stare at her but she refused to meet his eyes. She knew he wasn’t as naive as Lucy. And although given their relationship it would’ve been believable that she and Mark could have been innocently sleeping next to each other, the blush on her neck was a dead giveaway to any adult.

She was just hoping that no one else found out because right now almost everyone in her life would react pretty poorly if they found out that her and Mark had slept together. 

And they’d react even worse if they knew that it had meant something to the both of them.

“Wow.” Jaebum deadpanned unable to hide the bitterness, “Really? With Mark?”

Before Heiran could say anything back, the sound of a key turning in the lock caught all their attention. 

“Are you expecting someone?” Jaebum asked, tense.

Heiran shook her head with a frown and slowly stood from her chair as the door swung open.

“Duchess?”

Heiran’s shoulders sagged in relief, whether it was because it wasn’t an intruder or because it was Mark, she wasn’t sure. 

“In here!” She called before wincing when she realized what the scene he was about to walk into was going to look like.

Her, Jaebum and Lucy all having a meal together in her kitchen. Like some sort of picture perfect family. 

_Fake_ picture perfect family. 

Although to be fair, Mark had shared many reluctant breakfasts and starved lunches with both her Lucy long before, but it didn’t help ease her mind that much. 

“I got your call but you hung up before I could answer and then you weren't picking up my calls. Is everything ok—oh.” Mark’s face immediately morphed into a look of impassivity when he spotted Jaebum.

“Of course he has a key to your place.” Jaebum muttered, but Heiran was too distracted to hear.

Heiran raced up to him, “Sorry! Sorry! It was uh a misdial. I thought I ended the call before it went through.”

Mark pulled his gaze from Jaebum and looked down at her brows creased, “You okay?”

“Of course, believe it or not, I can be civil and have dinner.” She joked, her words tight. 

He stepped closer and his voice dropped a tone. “No. I mean, are you okay because I know you didn’t just misdial me. Something happened, didn’t it?”

She stared up at him and felt a sigh escape her, like whatever had been clouding her just cleared up. Sometimes she felt like a balloon, holding her breath just trying to get from one day to the next. 

But with Mark, it was like she could let some of that air out of her lungs.

Jaebum watched the way Mark’s eyebrows knit together and how his eyes flitted over every inch of Heiran’s face in search of any sign of distress. He was lucky that Lucy didn’t just run up and race into Mark’s arms too because things were starting to become startlingly clear to Jaebum.

He knew Heiran and Mark were close but he never truly thought there was anything between them. He had figured that Heiran saw him as a close friend, the same way she saw Yugyeom. She was fiercely protective of all her friends. 

But Lucy’s little slip up cleared the fog.

He thought Heiran was so poisoned by her father’s life that she’d never let another criminal into her life again. He thought that he had fucked things up so badly that she would probably never find a man with _this_ lifestyle even remotely appealing.

He thought Mark was so damaged and traumatized that he’d never let a real relationship form with a woman with substance. A woman with a family. He assumed Mark would be too consumed with guilt and self-loathing to let himself feel good. 

But there they were.

She gravitated towards him without her even realizing it, her entire body relaxing around him. 

He watched her like he feared someone would take her away from him. 

And Lucy was staring at Jaebum like she waiting for him to get the hint. 

Get the hint that a ring, a spontaneous dinner, and a mouthful of apologies doesn’t make a family.

Maybe this whole thing was a bust. 

Maybe he never had a shot at all. 

Maybe he’d always lose to Mark.


	26. Twentysixth

Mark was pretty sure Heiran was broken. 

It had been a whole month since she was fired and it seemed that she was still in a slump. And it only got worse when she got rejection letter after rejection letter after every single interview. 

By the fifth time Mark walked by her office, she was still staring at her laptop. She wasn’t typing or scrolling, her fingers weren’t even on the keyboard, she was just staring. 

He sighed and entered her office, rounding her desk, he stood over her shoulder to see what had stolen her attention for hours.

“Which one is this?” He asked. 

She was staring at a picture of a painting of a woman draped in a glamorous black dress staring off to the side. 

“It’s called Portrait of Madame X.” She said half-heartedly. “Doesn’t she seem fabulous? Like if you saw her at a party you’d just be drawn to her. I bet she’d be so interesting to talk to.”

He tilted his head, “Madame as in brothel owner?”

Her lip twitched, “No, Madame as in Madame. She was a socialite and wife of a banker.” 

“How much am I betting that when you first saw this painting you bought a dress exactly like that?” He mused.

She snorted, “Mark don’t be silly.”

He raised his brow waiting and she grinned, “I have 5.”

Chuckling, he shut her laptop, “Come on, get dressed.”

“Why? Where are we going? It’s almost 10PM.” She asked with a frown, allowing him to tug on her elbow and lead her back into her room. 

He pulled her closet open and stared at her wardrobe, “You’re clearly losing your mind being holed up in your office all month. It’s time you take a break.”

“How?” She asked skeptically. 

His grin challengingly and she gulped, wondering what he had in store, “It’s a surprise. But first, I need you to put on something you’d wear if you were going to a sketchy club but sadly you'll have to ditch the heels for something comfortable.”

“Well, that definitely doesn't raise red flags.” She grumbled, shoving him aside to dig deep into her closet where some of her old college clothes were tucked in. Most of her clothing choices were either too high-end business formal wear or comfortable house clothes. She didn’t have a huge selection of clothes to wear out for a night of fun.

When she came out of the bathroom she was in a pair of black ripped jeans, a black leather jacket and a cropped grey shirt. She even dug out a cute pair of sneakers she bought when she believed she could get into jogging. She cleared her throat and began fussing with her hair when Mark’s gaze travelled up and down the path of her body a few times. 

After settling on a ponytail and glanced at him expectantly, “Are you going to tell me where we’re going?”

He hummed smugly before looping a chain around her neck. She glanced down at the set of dog tags that hung down her chest, “Uhh…Mark this is a $160 shirt.”

“Yeah, that necklace is going to keep that $160 shirt clean.” He fired back before leading her out the house. 

Heiran gave him a concerned look, “I’m getting worried now.”

“Don’t be. I called Yugyeom over, he’ll watch Lucy until we’re back. Although, I think you need to check in on that guy more because it's troubling that he had no plans for a Friday night.” Mark quipped.

She scoffed as they walked to the car, “First of all, I meant I'm worried about where you’re taking me and second of all, _I_ didn’t have plans for a Friday night either.”

“I know. It’s kind of lame. And don’t worry, we’re just going somewhere out of your wheelhouse.”

Heiran got into Mark’s car before noticing something, “Wait, this car is different than your normal one.”

“Yeah, I don’t take this one out often.” Mark said as he pulled out of Heiran’s driveway.

She eyed the fancy interior. She wasn’t exactly a car expert but she knew enough to know that there was a lot of customizations made to the vehicle including the soft purple led lights that were glowing by their feet. “What is this car even for?”

“You’ll see.”

\-----

“What is this place?” Heiran asked in awe as they stepped out of Mark’s car. 

They were parked near a hill littered with other fancy cars. Her eyes drank in the crowds of people walking around, talking and drinking as music played in the background. They were all wearing elaborate streetwear, girls with their hair styled and their makeup smokey and dramatic and the guys were dressed just as well. 

For the first time in her life, she felt underdressed. 

“These are my Friday plans.” Mark said with a grin. 

Heiran fell in step with him when she noticed just how many people seemed to stop talking whenever she and Mark walked by. They would just stare, almost in awe but not at her. 

At Mark. 

Yet no one approached him or tried to talk to him, at the very most he would just exchange some nods. The air was cold but thick with the smell of weed and cigarette smoke but it wasn’t until they reached the top of the hill did she realize where they were. 

She stared at the empty desolate road below them and the set of 5 cars, lined up in a row that were revving their engines. A girl in a tight dress and heels higher than any of Heiran’s pairs strolled onto the road holding a huge flag and the second she waved it, the cars shot out at breakneck speed.

“Racing?” Heiran asked wide-eyed. 

He grinned, his gaze following the cars until they disappeared behind a bend. “Street racing actually.”

“I have so many questions.” Heiran said. 

Mark smiled knowingly, “Let me get you something to drink first.” 

She nodded as he Mark walked them over to a small group of people and a few faces she finally recognized. 

Jinyoung spotted her first and perked up, “Heiran?”

At the sound of her name, the girl next to him turned. Yeonhee’s face tightened, her glare darkening when she spotted her next to Mark. 

“Hey.” Heiran returned the hug he gave her. 

Jinyoung nodded at Mark before smiling, “I can’t believe he brought you here.”

“I’m gonna get her a drink.” Mark grumbled with an eye roll. He glanced at Yeonhee nervously but she was determined not to acknowledge him and was too busy staring at the jewelry around Heiran’s neck.

Sighing he walked to a truck filled with ice and drinks. Once he was gone Jinyoung turned to her, “How much has he told you?”

“About this place? Nothing. What can you tell me?” She prodded.

Jinyoung grinned devilishly, “Well for starters, it’s all illegal.”

“Is it a gang thing?” She asked.

“No, in fact, most of the people have regular day jobs or are going to college. We’re probably the most criminal ones here.” He explained. 

Yeonhee looked bored, “He means this isn’t fucking NASCAR. If the cops bust this place most of these people are getting reckless driving tickets and might lose their licenses or even get jail time or fines.”

Heiran no longer viewed Yeonhee’s anger with confusion or discomfort. She just smiled in amusement, “Cool. Do you guys know the people who race?”

“Yeah.” Yeonhee said without elaborating. 

Fortunately, Mark returned with a can of beer, “Hey, here, sorry these things don’t have the best selection.”

Heiran accepted the drink, grateful for anything to dull the painful conversations she was going to have to spend trying to have with Yeonhee. It was hard for her to hate the girl, even if the anger came from jealousy or pure hatred, Heiran remembered the conversations they’d have when she thought her name was Yuna. 

She always thought Yuna liked her. They talked about everything, they joked and bonded about being women in a male dominated field. She swore everything they said to each other was real, even if Yuna wasn’t her real name and SmartLogic wasn’t her real job.

Sometimes Heiran forgot Yuna was a client and viewed more as a friend or mentee. 

It was strange seeing the same girl hate her so much. 

Maybe all of it was fake.

“What happened?” Mark asked with narrowed eyes when she spaced out.

She shook her head, “It’s just a lot to take in. I don’t know much about racing.”

“It isn’t too complicated, people can come with whatever car they want. Although people that really customize their car up usually get some heat from other racers but it’s usually good-natured. Everyone knows each other, they don’t really let strangers on the road with them. It’s dangerous. Plus everyone follows unspoken rules about road etiquette. That doesn’t mean they’re not crazy competitive or try to find loopholes. But it’s not like they’re competing for money or anything. People just want the glory and reputation.”

“Who wouldn’t.” She teased.

He nodded in agreement, “Most of them though just enjoy driving fast or tinkering with cars and showing them off. There’s also a community here. Some of them grew up together. These people look out for one another. That’s why if someone new wants to come to these races or even get in a car it helps if you know someone who already races to get them to vouch for you.”

“And they always race here?” She asked.

He shook his head, “No, they rotate to a few places to avoid the cops. Usually, people take turns driving around to see if any cops are near, especially along the racing highways.” 

“They have a system and everything.” She was impressed.

He hummed, “Yeah, they definitely learned it the hard way. But other than that it’s pretty basic, they usually come up with a race route in advance and text it out. The start line is the finish line. It’s timed and someone keeps track to rank them. After that, some people just race around for kicks.”

She liked the way it sounded.

“As I live and breathe. Mark Tuan?”

The group turned to probably the most beautiful couple Heiran had ever seen in her life. The man was dressed in black but his hair was a dirty red, styled up off his forehead to reveal a sharp slit on his brow. His face was striking, with dangerous cheekbones, a perfect nose and lips that curled up like a kitten’s. The girl next to him whose waist he was holding looked quite the opposite. She had soft pink hair and the off-the-shoulder white dress that fluttered in the breeze stood out from everyone else’s denim and leather. She looked like an angel. 

Mark grinned and welcomed the handshake the man gave him and hugged the woman, scrunching his face up when she wrestled a kiss onto his cheek. “Hey Taeyong, fuck it’s been a while and Star, you look blinding as usual.”

“Hmm, doesn’t sound like a compliment.” Star said with a scowl.

Taeyong chuckled and shook his head, “I can’t believe you’re here, you haven’t shown up in almost 2 years we all thought you weren’t coming back. I thought I was seeing things at first when I saw your car.”

“Yeah, it got a little busy at work.” Mark said vaguely. 

Heiran watched the entire exchange in wonder. She had never seen Mark interact with a friend especially outside of the gang life. There was an ease with him that he carried, and judging by how affectionately Taeyong and Star were looking at him, it was obvious how much these people loved him. 

She wondered what they thought he did for work.

“And you brought company.” Star’s eyes glittered excitedly as she got on her tippy toes to peek over Mark’s shoulder at Heiran. 

“Hi.” Heiran said softly with a little wave.

Taeyong flinched and eyed his girlfriend wearily, “Star don—“

Before he could finish, Star shoved Mark out of the way and slammed her body into Heiran’s, squeezing her tight. She almost had the breath knocked out of her as the scent of vanilla filled her, “Hi! It’s so nice to meet you! Mark never brings girls with him. I’m Star.”

Heiran wheezed and that was when Taeyong pried Star off of her, “Sorry about her, she gets excited when she meets our friends’ girlfriends. I’m Taeyong, by the way.”

“This is Heiran and she’s not my girlfriend.” Mark deadpanned. “She’s a…friend. Behave Star or she’s never going to want to come back.”

Star rolled her eyes, a gesture Yeonhee mirrored for different reasons before she grabbed Jinyoung and dragged him away from the group in search of better drinks or better company.

“It’s nice to meet you both.” She returned. “Did you both meet Mark here?”

Taeyong grinned and looked at his friend, “Yup, the first time we met we didn’t even know each other’s name but he walked up to me and told me that Star had a crush on me and then walked away. It’s actually the reason I went up to her and asked her out. It’s how we started dating.”

Mark shrugged, “I overheard her talking about you. Thought it was sad.”

“Shut up!” Star barked, punching him in the arm as he laughed.

She turned to Heiran, “How did you and Mark become friends?”

Heiran looked at Mark worriedly, “Through work.”

“Oh! You met at his bar?” She asked.

Heiran nodded, “Uh, yeah.”

Taeyong turned to Mark and nudged his arm, “Did you hear? Ten’s racing tonight.”

“No shit. I thought he was still healing from that crash.” Mark said in surprise.

“The cast came off so there was no way we could stop him. This is actually his first one back and the minute he finds out you’re here he won’t let anyone leave until you race him.” Taeyong said, lifting a bottle of beer to his lips.

“He’s a little psychopath, isn’t he?” Mark joked.

Taeyong chuckled, “He’s been waiting for this ever since he ranked number one. I’m pretty sure the only reason he’s worked so hard defending his title is because he wanted to make sure he was number one when you eventually came by to watch a race.”

“He’s cute.” Star mused.

“He just admires you but unlike other people, his admiration comes in the form of the burning desire to beat you.” Taeyong deadpanned. 

The crowd around them started to get loud and Star pointed to the road, “Here he comes.”

A sleek red car crossed the white chalk line on the road to cheers. It came to a screeching halt and a few seconds later, three other cars followed behind in staggered order. There were a few floodlights illuminating the finish line. 

Ten climbed out through the window and sat on the edge of the window, his arms crossed over the hood of the car as he spoke to someone on the track. The person pointed towards the hill and Ten followed his finger until he was staring at Mark. The man’s face shifted and a huge grin broke through his face. He jumped out of the window and cupped his hands around his mouth. 

“Been long enough, old man. Get down here so I can beat your ass, Tuan.”

“I think that’s your cue.” Star said with a laugh.

Mark shook his head good-naturedly before looking over at her, “Will you be okay on your own for a little?”

“Uh, yeah but are you going to race?” She asked in alarm. She had seen the speed that Ten had barrelled through with. She had never seen a car drive that fast up close.

But Mark didn’t look the least bit worried, “Don’t worry. I’m not that bad.”

Heiran nodded and watched him head to his car. It all made sense now. His car had looked so different because it was probably customized for street-racing. 

“Seriously.” Taeyong spoke up, “He’s really good.”

She looked at him curiously, “Yeah?”

Star agreed, “He actually holds the record for fastest lap time and when we do tournaments he still has the longest-running number-one. No one has beaten his streak even though he stopped racing.”

Heiran had no idea, “How long did he do this for?”

“Maybe 5 years? He started literally the day after he got his learner’s permit but it was a few years after that he actually competed.”

He must’ve been racing on the side while with GOT7, “Why’d he stop?”

“He didn’t have the time to come to every race because he started working. It’s usually what happens to people who race after a while. He still comes by every now and then to hang out but ever since he left he doesn’t race, even for fun. He just watches although there’s this tradition that whenever he comes back, he has to race whoever has the current number 1.” Taeyong explained.

“Really?”

Star nodded, “Yeah, he ends up beating them by miles but people get excited when he shows up. He’s kind of a legend around here.”

“Wow, I had no idea.” Heiran said in disbelief. 

“You’re not really his friend, are you?” Star asked with a tilt of her head.

Heiran blinked, “What do you mean?”

She had this knowing look that seemed to undercut the soft colours she wore, “I already told you Mark doesn’t bring girls here and he certainly doesn’t give them his chains. Some guys get into racing because of the girls, they have groupies and they love the attention driving gets them. Some girls love the adrenaline of racing and the adrenaline of dating a guy who races. But Mark’s never paid much attention to those girls.”

“Okay…” She wasn’t entirely sure where Star was going with this.

Taeyong watched his girlfriend in amusement and decided to tag in, “And I’m guessing he drove you here? He didn’t even drive Yeonhee when the two of them were hooking up.”

“So you’re not his friend, you’re not a casual fling, you’re not his girlfriend but you’re something in the middle.” Star concluded.

“N-No, I don’t think so.” It sounded weak even to her.

“Oh trust me, girl.” Star said as she turned to the road when Mark’s matte black car pulled up next to Ten’s, “You are definitely something to Mark.”

“Do either of you race?” She asked, desperate to change the subject.

Star and Taeyong both nodded, “Yeah we do but not competitively like some of these guys. Like Ten, for example. We just race with friends once the tournament stuff is over.”

She watched as the girl walked onto the road again and waved the flag. Her eyes widened when Mark’s car shot out first and immediately put a lot of distance between him and Ten. She could only see him for a few seconds before the car vanished around the curve.

“Well fuck, I guess he isn’t rusty.” Taeyong said in amusement.

Jinyoung and a reluctant Yeonhee returned to the group, his eyes bright, “Did he start?”

“Yeah, just now.” Taeyong said.

Heiran took the few minutes before the racers reappeared to take in the sights around her. More of the crowd had gathered on the hill, probably to get a better look at Mark racing. There was so much effortless confidence and style in the people around her, she felt like she was buzzing. The energy was palpable. She no longer felt like a boring corporate suit or single mother. 

She felt free. 

“There are a lot of couples here.” She noticed out loud as she spotted the nth pair, walking hand in hand. 

Star hummed, “Yeah but when you’ve been around here long enough you start to notice which pair are an actual long term couple and which ones are just sort of part of the street-racing experience.”

“Street-racing experience?” Heiran asked, intrigued. 

Star giggled, “Yeah, like me and Taeyong have been together for years, most people know that because we’re always together. But there’s also like a huge chunk of people who date racers just to be part of the experience. They want to be the person that runs into the winner’s arms when they get out of the car, they want to put their hand in their girlfriend’s pocket, they want to ride in the car with a racer. When you date a racer everyone talks about it, everyone knows about it. Some of the girls also love the feeling of knowing that other girls want the man they’re dating and honestly, I’ve been there.”

Heiran watched Taeyong’s face flush as he pressed his mouth against the side of her head. Star waved her hands around her, “It’s like part of the culture. It’s fun dating a racer, even if you’re not looking for a love-connection. It’s like how some high schoolers want to date a team captain and wear their jersey.”

That made sense to her, back in that day Heiran had her eye on a couple soccer players. She had the fantasy of walking confidently in the school hallways wearing someone’s soccer jersey. Although those fantasies never became realities, but suddenly she understood the allure. 

“That makes sense.” 

Star looked around at some of the people, “Everyone here has some sort of history with someone else. It’s actually pretty entertaining.” 

Taeyong laughed but Yeonhee just crossed her arms and turned away.

A few minutes passed before the sound of a roaring engine started to come closer. Everyone stood up to get a better view as if they had no idea who would appear first.

Mark turned the curve first and crossed the finish line and a full five minutes passed before Ten’s car pulled in second. The crowd roared in excitement when Mark stepped out of his car. Ten launched out of his car as well and tackled Mark around the waist, hugging him tightly and jumping up and down. Heiran smiled softly when Mark laughed, hugging Ten back.

“Is Mark faster or is Ten getting slower?” Star mused jokingly. 

Heiran felt a strange bubble of pride grow in her chest as she watched Mark and Ten walk up the slope of the hill together. Mark seemed so laid back as if he hadn’t lapped someone going at an insane speed, probably breaking his own record. She never realized how impressive Mark was with how confident he moved.

Girls and guys alike were watching Mark, preying on his attention but he ignored all calls of his name as he spoke into Ten’s ear. When they reached the top of the hill people were still staring but Mark walked straight to her.

There as something attractive about how he acted like he wasn't amazing. Like he didn't know his own power. She didn’t even bother herself with the scoff Yeonhee let out. 

“Impressed?” 

She tilted her head, “That you’re so good at breaking the rules of the road that you’re apparently a legend at it? Very.” But the twinkled in his eye probably meant that he saw through her sarcasm. 

“You think Lucy would like coming here?” Jinyoung joked.

Mark grunted, “Over my dead body is she coming here.”

Heiran raised a brow, “What do you mean?”

“That kid’s getting her license in 6 years, I don’t need her thinking she’s going to use it for this.”

Heiran dug her teeth into her lip as she imagined in few years Mark showing up thinking he was just going to watch some old friends race only to see Lucy drive up to the starting line. He’d lose it. 

Conversation between the others, mainly Ten’s re-telling of his race against Mark offered Heiran and Mark a moment of privacy as they watched the crowd. A pause in the races gave people a chance to grab more drinks. “What do you think?”

“This is so cool. I had no idea you did stuff like this.”

“Layers, duchess, I’ve got tons of them.”

She hummed and shook her head, “I wish I got to be a part of this when I was younger. It seems like so much fun, to make friends and hang out like this.”

“Well, you don’t have to do something illegal to do that.” He said pointedly.

This time it was her eyes that twinkled, “Yeah but where’s the fun in that?”

Mark blinked at her daring tone, surprised at the lilt in her voice, “I thought you were un-corruptable.”

“Layers, Mark.”

A laugh tumbled out of his throat that sounded a little relieved. He was nervous about bringing her into a part of his life that had nothing to do with GOT7 but was just as criminal, “I’m glad you liked it. I was a little worried you might not.”

“It’s different but not bad. Plus it got me thinking about the whole street-racer experience.” She said.

Mark shot her a strange look, “Did you talk to Star?”

“How’d you know?”

He shook his head, “Sounds like something she’d say.”

He seemed more lighthearted and carefree than she had ever seen him. She thought it was impossible for him to ever not be stressed about work. There had always been a heaviness that she felt he carried with him but seeing him in this environment made her chest churn. 

This was what he was really like. Laughter, smiles and warm banter. 

She wanted to keep him here with Taeyong, Ten and Star where people adored him and his muscles weren’t constantly wired, poised to pounce. She liked seeing his body slouched and relaxed. If that's what it took for him to stay this way, she'd do it.

“It’s the whole racing culture, I guess. It reminds me of what I missed out in at college. Where people take their fashion statements seriously, where people watch these races like it’s the NBA finals, where girls want to make out with a racer after he wins and wants his hand in their back pocket. It’s the type of fun carefree shit that I wish I got to do when I was younger. I wish my worries were as simple as _I hope he likes me_ or _I hope I win this race._ ”

“You love Lucy.” He said it as if she needed reminding. She didn’t.

“I’m not saying that I wish I never had her. I just wish I got the chance to do something like this, you know? Before the heels, blouses and pretentiousness.” 

Back then she barely even went on dates or clubbing. She was either working or studying, the only times she went out was when Yugyeom promised to babysit Lucy, when she had no schoolwork _and_ a day off from her many part-time jobs. It was rare all those things lined up. 

And after college, she traded cars for over-priced bars. She missed doing things for fun and not for status or reputation. 

He raised his brow, “Maybe, I can help with that.” 

“How?” 

He kept his eyes locked on hers and stepped closer so that his chest brushed her shoulder and slowly reached around her, sinking his hand into her back pocket. Her eyes widened as he tugged her close with a cheeky smile. “How’s that feel, duchess?”

“I hate you.” She groaned, but she just leaned against him. She wasn’t shy, not when he’d touch her way more intimately before. This was nothing, the heat of his palm against her jeans was something she’d admit to liking.

He laughed, oblivious to everyone staring at the two of them. It wasn’t common for Mark to bring a girl to the races but it was even more uncommon for Mark to be touching a girl like that.

A legend like that shows up after two years with a girl no one knows by his side? By the time the night was over, everyone would be whispering about the mystery girl.

“What’s this for, anyways?” She asked, hooking her finger around the chain.

He looked away, “It’s my chain, people around here know each other really well. New faces aren’t common and most of the time they aren’t welcomed considering how illegal this all is. That helps people know that you know one of the racers. In case none of us were around I didn’t want anyone causing you trouble.”

“Are you guys done or do we still have to pretend that you aren’t grabbing her ass in public.” Yeonhee barked. 

Heiran felt the sigh that escaped Mark’s chest as he looked at Yeonhee. There was never any anger or malice when he looked at her, just exhaustion. Jinyoung watched Yeonhee with an inexplicable look on his face while Taeyong and Star gave him an apologetic smile and tried to intervene, “You wanna race me for old times sake?”

“Sure.” Mark accepted easily. Heiran was under the impression that Mark only ever raced the whoever was number 1 but she was beginning to see so many similarities between Mark and Star that reminded her of her own dynamic with Yugyeom. It was obvious that he had a soft spot for her and why he was the closest to the couple.

“Taeyong’s gonna ride with me, that okay?” She asked. 

Mark raised a brow, “Yeah, it just means I’ll beat the both of you at the same time.”

“God, you’re annoying.” Taeyong grumbled.

Everyone chuckled except Yeonhee. Star nodded to the parking lot, “I’ll bring my car around and we’ll tell the organizers.”

Mark turned to Heiran and pulled his hand out of her pocket, “Do you want to ride with me?”

“Is it safe?”

He smirked like the devil's song was between his lips, “Have I ever put you in danger?”

That’s how she ended up in Mark’s car idling by the starting line. She buckled herself in and sat tensely until Mark touched her shoulder, brushing her hair back gently, “You’ll be fine. Relax and enjoy it.”

“Yeah, yeah.” She grumbled, making him smile.

A few seconds later, Star’s car pulled up next to them. Heiran’s lips split into a grin when she stared at the matte pastel pink car that rolled up next to her. “I love her.”

Mark chuckled, “Don’t let her aesthetic fool you. More people are probably scared of her than they are of me.”

“She was nice to me, though.” She pointed out.

“She likes you.”

“But she just met me.”

“I liked you when I first met you.”

She let out a stunned scoff, “That’s a lie.”

“You looked good in heels, what can I say?” He said with a goofy shrug.

She glared at him, “You pulled a gun on me when we first met.”

He smirked and it did awful things to her, “Yeah and I distinctly remember thinking about what a shame it would be to kill you.”

“This is not the street racer experience I wanted.” She hissed.

He laughed and she mirrored the sound herself, “If it makes you feel better, I’d probably feel more than shame if something happened to you.”

Her laughter faded as she turned to look at him, drinking in his face and how the darkness contrasted with the purple of the LED lights made him look almost supernatural. Her attention was pulled when the same girl as before walked onto the road and stood in the gap between the two cars.

Mark revved the car, “Ready, duchess?”

She couldn’t reply when the girl waved the flag and the car sped past her. Unlike Ten, Star was close behind Mark but not enough to overtake him.

Despite what Mark said to her, it was hard for Heiran to feel at ease when everything outside the window blurred at the speed he was going. She glanced at the speedometer, her eyes widening as the needle never stopped moving higher and higher

In an attempt to avoid motion sickness she turned and watched Mark. She decided to stay silent to avoid distracting him. His jaw was set tight but not out of stress or anger but because he was focused.

It was amazing to see him weave in and out of lanes just for dramatics, his eyes never straying from the road unless to check his mirrors. He shifted between gears smoothly, picking up speed at a steady rate so that Star fell further and further back. He handled the road like it was second nature.

Busy staring at him, she didn’t see the turn ahead so when Mark snapped the wheel sharply, sending them sailing around a bend, she gasped loudly. She could feel her heart thudding loudly in her chest and her nails dug into the thick expensive leather of the seat. 

Mark didn’t flinch or turn to look at her but one hand drifted to her thigh, squeezing it reassuringly.

She wanted to smack his hand off her and tell him to put it back on the wheel but it was almost like he drove better with one hand. The only time he ever let go of her was to change the gears and even then, he’d return his fingers to the meat of her thigh the first chance he got. 

Like a switch flipped, serenity washed over her. Her muscles melted into the car seat and her heart slowed to a steady rhythm. Now she knew why Mark told her to enjoy the ride. There was something soothing about everything around them speeding up but whatever they did in the car was slow. The way he squeezed her leg, the way his chest rose with every breath, even when he blinked. It was like they were still and the world around them blurred. 

Before she knew it, the crowd was reappearing and they were back to the starting line which Mark crossed with ease. 

He looked over at her when the car came to a stop and grinned as if he wasn’t breaking 150 miles per hour just a few minutes ago. “Wasn’t so bad now, was it?”

“No it wasn’t…although for future reference, I’m more of a cruising down the highway kind of girl.” She said, slightly out of breath.

He squeezed her thigh, “Noted for next time.”

When they got out of the car Star raced up Mark grabbing his shoulders excited, “I was so close behind you, did you see?! I must’ve beat Ten’s time easily.”

Taeyong looked delirious and it made Heiran wonder what Star was like when she was behind the wheel. Because whatever she was doing, her boyfriend looked completely lovestruck when he wrapped an arm around her and held her close to his chest. 

Mark ruffled Star’s hair much to her disapproval, “If you started competing in tournaments you’d wipe out everyone here.”

Star looked over at Heiran, “What was your first street racing ride like? Mark never lets anyone ride with him, did you have fun?”

“It was scary.” Heiran admitted, “But really fun.”

Mark looked down at her, his gaze soft that got Taeyong tilting his head curiously. Star was a romantic, she loved pairing people together either in her mind or in real life so he hadn’t thought much about what she had said about Heiran and Mark. 

But now he was wondering if maybe Star wasn’t that far off. 

“Ten’s throwing a little thing at his place, you guys should come.” Taeyong suggested, “I know that sounds like an invitation but Mark you basically have to be there. He's throwing this thing because you finally raced him.”

Mark frowned and looked at Heiran, “What about Lucy?”

“Yugyeom’s watching her.” Heiran said with a grin, “We can stay.”

\-----

The car ride was silent, Jinyoung said nothing, just staring at the road ahead of him. Yeonhee was shaking her leg and staring out the window. 

“That’s the _one_ place that was ours. The one place where I thought I’d never have to think about her.” Yeonhee said stiffly. 

Jinyoung kept quiet and just continued driving to Ten’s house while wondering if being at a party with Mark and Heiran would just make things worse. 

If he did speak up, he would’ve said that _no_ , the races weren’t _‘theirs’_ at all. Mark started racing without telling anyone at GOT7. It was where he would go to clear his mind and give himself a break from the life he led, the things he had to do and the grip it had on him. It wasn’t until a few years after he started racing that he told Jinyoung in confidence where he had been disappearing on some nights. 

After he started sleeping with Yeonhee, she had accused him of sleeping with someone else because he’d suddenly be unreachable in the middle of the night. So, to appease her and to avoid her from bringing the attention of other members to his extracurriculars, he brought her and Jinyoung to a race. 

He was pretty sure that if it wasn’t for Yeonhee, Mark would’ve kept his hobby a secret for much longer. 

And he would’ve definitely told Yeonhee the reason Mark stopped racing was because of her. Because ever since he brought them along, he had been constantly on edge. He was worried that their Boss would find out and try to recruit some of the racers into GOT7 or use their races as a front for one of the operations and call the cops if any of the racers refused to comply.

She had inadvertently turned something that brought Mark peace into something that made him anxious. 

Sometimes he wondered if Yeonhee ever thought about the positions that she constantly put Mark in. How he gave up on one of his only stress-relievers because of how selfish she was and he did it without blaming her. Maybe Mark felt guilty about how much Yeonhee liked him when he only saw her as a friend with benefits but he always did whatever Yeonhee wanted without complaining. 

The only thing he never gave her was a real relationship. 

But to be fair, Jinyoung wasn’t always as selfless as Mark. So who was he to judge her?

“Why aren’t you saying anything?” Yeonhee asked. 

Jinyoung glanced at her, yanked from his thoughts and shrugged, “It’s not like you asked him not to bring her. How would he have known? I’m sure if you told him it bothered you he wouldn’t have wanted to make you uncomfortable.”

She huffed and crossed her arms, “Do you how many times I used to ask him to let me ride with him in a race? He always shut me down, saying that it was dangerous and that he couldn’t have distractions.”

“Well to be fair, that was back when he was racing competitively. Those races _are_ dangerous.” Jinyoung said.

She rolled her eyes, “I just don’t get why I used to ask for everything meanwhile that girl gets everything without lifting a finger. Like are you joking with the whole hand in her pocket thing? What type of corny-ass high schooler bullshit is that?”

“You know that isn’t true. She wasn’t born with a silver spoon. Neither were any of us.”

Yeonhee huffed, “You're missing the point.” 

“I can just drop you off at home if this party is too much for you.” Jinyoung said quietly. 

She frowned, “No, I’m not going to hide because of an intruder.”

Deep down, Jinyoung didn’t think Yeonhee was really that possessive of a person. He knew that she was hung up on him because she didn’t know anything else. She didn’t think she could do better than Mark. 

She didn’t think she could be happier than she was with Mark. 

Jinyoung would disagree. 

He pulled up onto Ten’s street and drove in circles looking for parking as some of the most expensive cars he’s ever seen lined the streets. “Whatever you do tonight, whether it’s hooking up with someone to try to get him jealous, throwing your drink at her or trying to make-out with him, it’s going to work against you.”

“You make me sound petty.” She snapped. 

He sighed when he found a parking space. One of Jinyoung’s biggest fears was that one day Mark would have enough and just leave all their lives for good.

Jinyoung didn’t have friends as selfless as Mark, he didn’t have people who he trusted or relied on. But he knew people like Mark, people who never complained, people who took your mean words and beatings with gritted teeth. 

People like that can only put up with so much. 

A part of him feared that Yeonhee and their Boss would push Mark until the point that he’d never come back. 

But the other part of him would stare at Yeonhee when she sat across from him complaining about his best friend who broke her heart and wondered when she would see that he was right across from her. He’d wonder when she’d realize that under all the sarcasm they threw at each other was something more honest. 

He watched her fall for Mark, he watched Mark struggle with knowing she wanted more than what they agreed on, he watched her hurt Mark and Mark hurt her. He watched her fixate on everything about him, jealous of any women who spoke to him.

He watched her when Mark ended things.

And he watched her continue to be oblivious to how his own stare would linger and his touch would always be too tender. 

Jinyoung silently pulled into the space and reached for his key when Yeonhee’s hand softly reached for his wrist, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to spend all of today being a bitch and complaining about him.”

“It’s just—doesn’t it get tiring? Wanting something from him that he clearly never wants to give you? Aren’t you tired from always being upset over everything he does? He’s happy. And I don’t think he’s going to stop being happy. Why can’t you just let him go and try to be as happy as he is. Doesn’t it get tiring holding onto that anger? Aren't you tired trying to measure up to Heiran?”

She blinked at him and he could see the moment the harsh and angry Yeonhee fell away and it was the girl that he always saw. “Yeah…I think I am tired.”

“I know he makes you mad but do you want Mark to leave your life, _our_ lives, for good? Because I don’t. I don’t think you want that either. But if you’re going to make him feel bad for being with someone who makes him feel good, he’ll leave. If he thinks that him existing makes you upset, he’ll just remove himself from the equation. I don’t want that. It’s not fair to him or me.”

“I don’t want that either.” She admitted and for once she didn’t pounce on him with a dozen questions when he accidentally implied that Mark was _with_ Heiran. She just sat silently. “I heard you when you asked him if he’d ever leave GOT7.”

He tensed before relaxing, “Which means you heard his response.”

“You’re saying I should just give up or he might leave?” She asked.

“He might still leave for a hundred other reasons but I think you could be happier if you finally let go.” He replied. “You can still be sad that he doesn’t feel the same but you need to stop expecting something from him. You’re only hurting yourself.”

She chewed on her lip, her brows furrowing in thought. He reached out and smoothed her hair down with the tips of his fingers. Her head jerked up and her eyes widened when she stared at him. 

He smiled and opened his door, “Now, let’s go have fun.”

Her lips quirk and she got out of his car and walked with him, shoulder to shoulder towards Ten’s house. The backs of their hands brushed but he made no attempt to lace his fingers with hers.

He wished he could be a little more selfish. 

\-----

If Mark had any fear that Heiran wouldn’t fit in or wouldn’t like the street racing crowd, they were long gone now. 

When they first walked in, she stayed as close to Mark as humanly possible, following him around like a shadow. But once Star and Taeyong strolled in and fed her a few shots, she had loosened up and managed to woo even the burliest, intimidating racers in the house. She wasn’t even that drunk yet conversation and laughter flew out of her easily as she befriended everyone. And when people would see their friends chatting with the mysterious new girl, they’d approach her too. 

“Dude, your girl is awesome! Why did it take you so long to bring her around?” Ten shouted straight in Mark’s ear.

Mark just smiled and shrugged, “Glad you like her.”

That was another thing. 

After people started talking to her, they’d come up to him one at a time complimenting her. At first, he just nodded to be polite until he realized they had assumed she was his girlfriend. Initially, he tried to explain that they were friends but it was easier to just nod with vague gratitude. 

“Man, I can’t believe you’re dating someone so cool.” Ten mused. 

Mark narrowed his eyes, Ten’s neck was flushed indicating he was more than a little drunk but not enough to have lost his filter complete, “Excuse me?”

“I just assumed the weird toxic unhealthy thing you had going with Yeonhee was like a kink or something.” Ten said. 

Mark looked disturbed, “I was toxic to Yeonhee? Was it because of the friends with benefits thing?”

“No, dude.” Ten said softly, his gaze warming when he saw the panic on his face, “You weren’t the toxic one in the relationship.”

Mark’s eyes widened, “Come on, Ten, you know Yeonhee. You’re even friends with her. She’s not toxic. Our relationship was just complicated. I wasn’t great to her either.” 

“There’s a difference between being a dick and being toxic. She tried to control your life, she wanted to be in every part of it and when she wasn’t, she’d throw a fit and guilt you.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Mark asked, stunned. 

Ten tilted his head and Mark wondered if his friend was really as tipsy as he had first assumed, “I’m not an idiot. I know you didn’t leave racing because of work. Well, not entirely because of work. You loved it too much to leave over something so trivial. Ever since you brought Yeonhee along you stopped having fun.”

“Yea—“

“Look, I’m not here to make you reflect on your past. It was weird having you gone for 2 years. I just really like that girl.” He said, pointing to Heiran who was leaning over the makeshift bar to see what was being poured into a cup. “Yeonhee is cool but there’s something about you guys together that just fucks up her brain chemistry. I'm glad you're done with that. I like Heiran. I like her with you.”

Mark was speechless and just stared at his friend whose face immediately morphed into a pure beaming smile. It was incredible how people he hadn’t seen in 2 years seemed to know how to read him. “Thanks, bud.”

“Mark! Mark!” Heiran came racing over to the two of them holding a drink, careful not to spill it, “Look at what Jaehyun made me!” 

Ten glanced into the cup before his eyes widened, “Are those blackberries?”

“Yeah!” Heiran said excitedly, “He made me a blackberry mojito! It’s so good.”

Ten looked furious, “Are you fucking kidding me?! He told him that he’d rather die than make me a fruity drink. He never makes sweet dri—what the hell? Jung! You motherfucker! Get the blender and those strawberries you’re making me a fucking daiquiri.” 

Heiran giggled as Ten stormed away to yell at the self-appointed bartender. Mark bit down on the inside of his cheek to fight off the smile because Ten was right. Jaehyun never made sweet drinks for anyone, didn’t matter who you were, he’d roll his eyes and tell you to make it yourself because he didn’t consider it to be real alcohol. 

But he made one for Heiran. 

He reached out and tucked her hair behind her ear when she took a careful sip of her drink. She hummed, pleased with the taste before curling up next to Mark, hooking on arm around his back before slipping her hand into his back pocket, making him laugh. Clearly, the mojito wasn’t her first drink of the night. 

“I need to apologize.” She said.

He raised his brow and led her outside, smiling at people who greeted him. She finally pulled her hand away when they sat on the porch. “For what.”

“I think I let people assume we were dating because they kept asking and after a few drinks I stopped keeping track of all the cover stories.” She admitted. 

He said nothing and just smiled while looking at Ten’s backyard. Heiran took another sip before inspecting his face, “You looked nice today.”

He blinked and looked at his clothes, nothing he hadn’t worn before. He looked at her quizzically and he was surprised to see her eyes weren’t glassy and her skin wasn’t red.

“No, I mean, like here. Today. You had good energy. You seemed really happy. It was nice.” She admitted. 

“I’m a generally happy person, duchess.” He said back. 

She set her drink aside and hugged her knees, “Okay. But you seemed happier. You can always be happier.”

He contemplated her words before looking at her, “And you don’t have to look at exciting things as things you can’t enjoy anymore now that you’re an adult with responsibilities.” 

“You’re right.” She conceded. 

He quirked a brow, “Usually you have something to say back.”

“New me.” She said, leaning her head on his shoulder. And maybe it was just the air and the sound of Taeyong laughing about something in the house that had him acting differently. He curled his arm around her and pulled her close, kissing the top of her head. 

In another world, he wouldn’t have to lie about dating her, she wouldn’t need to apologize for letting people think that they were and he didn’t have to treat tonight like it was out of character. 

But then she sighed dreamily against his neck and he realized that maybe he needed to stop thinking about another world. 

Because the one he was in right now was pretty good.

\-----

They stayed at Ten’s house for another 2 hours before they decided to call it a night. Heiran did a good job of cutting herself off early so that by the time they were ready to leave she had sobered up. 

The rest of the night was nice and when he made eye contact with Yeonhee she wasn’t glaring or rolling her eyes. She even shot him a quick awkward smile before turning her back to him. It was so unexpected that he didn’t even notice that Jinyoung had spent most of the night with her except for when he popped over to say hi and tease him about showing off on the track. 

When he announced loudly to the house that they were leaving the house responded with a series of goodbyes and boos for their early departure. Although it seemed they were more disappointed in Heiran leaving than him. 

Even the drive back was nice, Heiran spent it chattering about all the people she met and who she really liked and he’d chip in with little stories about them. By the time they pulled up to her house they were laughing and out of breath. He kept the car running but leaned back in his seat to stare at her. 

“Thank you.” She said, panting and trying to catch her breath, “I really needed tonight.”

“I’m glad.” He murmured, “We can go again if you want. I know they probably want to see you soon.”

She grinned, happy and unbuckled her belt, “I want to.”

He wondered once everything is over, once he has no purpose in her life anymore if she’d still show up to the races on her own. He was positive that her phone was probably filled with everyone’s numbers, they’d tell her where the races were. 

He wondered if he’d go to the races just hoping she’d come. 

He wondered if when she did, he’d spend the entire time just watching her, wishing he could stand with her and touch her. He wondered if it was a mistake letting her into every private place in his life because once she was gone, he’d always feel her around. There would be no escaping those eyes. 

Would they be strangers when this was all over?

Lost in his thoughts, he hadn’t realized that he had cupped her cheek, pulling his thumb back and forth over her skin while inching his face close to her. 

Oh, who was he kidding?

He did realize what he was doing. 

But before he could kiss her, she hesitated, “Mark, we can’t.”

He closed his eyes and sighed. He was always the one that stopped her, that told her that they couldn’t go back to the night before she got married. He was the one that set boundaries for both their sakes and sanities.

It wasn’t fair for him to be sending her mixed messages, "I know. But I want you. Fuck. I want you so much. In my lap. In my car. I want my hands in your pockets. I want to do all the carefree love-stupid shit Taeyong does with Star but I want to do it with you.”

So much for mixed signals.

Her eyes were glassy for the first time that night. “My self-control is so thin right now and it’ll be obsolete if you keep this up.”

“I know.”

She gulped, her eyes darting across his face. It felt so surreal, all the pulling away, all the tension whenever they were in a room together, “Just try a little harder and I’ll be yours.”

Her whisper was so tempting. He stared hard into his eyes before sighing and pulling away. “No. We shouldn’t. I’m sorry for doing this.”

His hand slipped over her face and leaned back to put distance between them again.

“Mark please talk to me.” She asked. 

He hesitated. He couldn’t stop the thoughts that knocked him off his high. He knew what Ten was trying to say to him but the words toxic were hard to unhear. What if his friend was wrong. What if Mark was just bad for people? What if he was like poison that just screwed up lives. 

He couldn’t just act on his feelings because it could ruin her life and it could ruin Lucy’s life and Lucy deserved the best life. She deserved to be protected and kept safe until the very last moment before she had to go out and face the world. The thought of everything he’d bring with him if he started this with Heiran was weighing him down. 

He knew if he started it, he’d never let go, not unless she said so, which meant being selfish, hurting them both, hurting Lucy just so he could have what he wanted. He could never do that. Not to mention she was still married.

“Mark.”

“You have Lucy.” Was all he could force out of his throat.

Her softened, concerned look melted into a hard, almost disgusted stare. “What?”

“You have Lucy and I can’t j—“

“Can’t fuck a mom? Can’t care for her? Can’t raise a kid that isn’t yours? Can’t have a relationship? Fuck you, Mark. I thought you were different. Better.” She snapped, rage filling her.

His eyes widened, “Heiran that’s not—“

“You know what? Never mind. You’re right, we shouldn’t do this. I’m not wasting my time with this the way I wasted it with Jaebum. I’ve learned not to make that mistake twice.”

Before he could get his brain to work, she swung the door open and slammed it shut before storming up her stairs into her house. He knew he should go in and clarify what he meant. He should follow her and knock on the door until she let him in. 

All it would take was a short conversation and she’d see what he meant to say. That it was all a misunderstanding. He could soothe all of her worries and insecurities. He could show her all the ways he would never be like Jaebum. 

But then what?

He still couldn’t be with her.

What would be the point in fixing things? Maybe it was better if she hated him. 

They couldn’t have feelings for each other and worry about self-restraint if she couldn’t stand being in the same room as him. She couldn’t convince him to throw his fears away if the sight of him made her angry.

He felt sick. 

This was probably what Jaebum said to himself before he broke up with her.

Closing his eyes, he felt small and pathetic. 

Making his decision, he drove away and headed straight to GOT7’s headquarters. He parked in a dark corner and pulled out his phone. He dialled Heiran’s number and as expected, it rang once before it went straight to voicemail. He had hoped for as much. 

“Duchess, there’s a hundred things I want to say to you right now but I need to make one thing painfully clear. Lucy will never be a deal-breaker for me. If anything part of what makes being with you so fucking good is the fact that Lucy’s there. She’s there with those huge fucking eyes that look at you like you’re invincible. I love that kid more than anything. If you ever think that she scares me, that the thought of raising her, taking care of her scares me, you’re wrong. So damn wrong. Because I’m not. But baobei, you need to remember that GOT7 has never done you any favours. And I don’t want to hurt you. I don’t want Lucy’s life and future to be at risk because of something I did or something GOT7 did. I told you that that night meant something to me. It did. And I know that every night after will mean more and more to me until you’re the only thing that matters to me. So, you’re better off without me complicating your life and making everything worse for you. Neither of you deserves that. Maybe I’m a little selfish because you’re going to haunt me, baby girl, fuck you’re never going to leave my mind even if you walk out of my life. And I think it’s better if you do that now before I can’t function without y—“

“If you’re satisfied with your message press 1, to re-record pres—“

Mark pressed 1, he didn’t care that he could barely remember what he had just confessed to her voicemail. Even if it cut him off mid-sentence, even if he pretty sure he had admitted some really big things to her, he didn’t care. 

He said what needed to be said.

He was honest. 

He hoped she saw that. 

Tossing his phone aside, he was about to turn his car on when movement caught his eye. He ducked down, hoping not to be seen because he had no excuse to hide behind and he couldn’t exactly admit to moping around. 

Wait

It was nearly 3AM, who would still be at the headquarters? 

He peeked up over the wheel and felt her stomach drop. 

His Boss stood by the door shaking Jaebum’s hand. 

Shaking. Hands.

His Boss smiled and patted Jaebum on the back before heading back inside. Jaebum jogged to his car and got in before driving off, leaving Mark alone in the parking lot hiding in the shadows. 

What the fuck was happening?

Since when did Jaebum make personal trips to the headquarters much less in the middle of the night when no one was around? 

And since when did his Boss fucking smile and pat Jaebum on the back while shaking his hand. Like they were friends.

Mark grabbed his phone and dialled his Boss’s cell number. After a few rings, he picked up, “Tuan, it’s 3AM, this better not be a drunk dial.”

“No, it’s not, sir. Sorry for the late call. Are you at the office?” He squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to focus on his voice and keeping it steady.

There was a pause. “This late? Are you crazy? No, I’m home. Why?”

He lied. 

He lied about meeting Jaebum. 

But why?

“Hello? Mark?”

“Oh—uh I was just calling because I’m feeling a little sick, I feel a bug coming down so I might not be able to be in tomorrow, you might have to send Jinyoung or Jackson to Heiran.”

“That’s fine. If anything Jaebum can check on her, but if you’re that concerned over her safety I’ll send someone in. Get better. Sleep it off.” He responded. 

Mark felt his hand tremble as he gripped the steering wheel until his knuckles blanched. “Thanks Boss.”

“No problem kid.”


	27. Twentyseventh

She didn’t listen to the voicemail. 

She couldn’t. 

She wasn’t ready. 

All Heiran did was glare at her phone and the notification that was teasing her. 

His dogtags were tight in her hand, she hadn't gotten the chance to give them back to him.

Honestly, what could he possibly have said in that message that would make things better? She wasn’t exactly prepared to hear him apologize and tell her that he just wasn’t ready to be in Lucy’s life yet. All this time she thought he was keeping distance between them because of GOT7 and Jaebum but maybe she had read it all wrong. 

He just wasn’t ready for Lucy. 

She was already feeling pretty low, she didn’t have to hear Mark’s rumbling voice awkwardly letting her down. It didn’t take a psychic to guess what that voicemail probably held. ‘ _I’m sorry to hurt you. I never meant for things to get this complicated. I just think we’re better off the way we were when this all started. I just can’t be the man you need me to be._ ’

God just the thought of having to hear his voice say something like that made her skin crawl. She thought she was good at reading people and their intentions, especially after Jaebum. But the truth was, she had genuinely believed that the commitment and intensity wouldn’t freak him out. He knew her past, he knew what she expected out of a partner when it came to Lucy. 

And he still stuck around. 

He still kissed her, slept with her and told her how much he wanted her. 

Huffing, she pushed her phone away refusing to check her voicemail before standing and walking to her backyard for some fresh air. 

Yesterday at the race track was one of the best days she’s had that wasn’t with Lucy. She forgot how it felt on her own, not as a mother but as herself. If she could, she would spend every day with Lucy but a part of her didn’t think she knew how to be on her own. A part of her feared the day Lucy would go to college and move out because then what? What would she do with her time and with her life?

Last night she thought she saw a glimpse of what she could have. 

Last night she had made up her mind. She wanted to be with Mark. 

It was clear now that Mark didn’t want the same thing, it was her fault for letting her feelings and imagination get the best of her. But in those few hours the idea of dating Mark, of being with him or having a relationship and future with him felt _right._

She could see Friday nights with him at races. She could see them sneaking home to Lucy together and whispering to each other as they got ready for bed together. She could see Mark teaching Lucy how to drive. She could see Mark searching for her face whenever they went out. 

That night, with booze in her veins, adrenaline charging through her body and Mark’s hand on her back, she had come to an overly romantic decision. 

Mark was _it_ for her. 

They’d work out the stuff with GOT7, they come to a compromise, she was sure they’d figure out. 

But just like every other time she gave someone her heart, it was crushed before she could blink. 

The truth was that Mark was just like every other guy, he was just better at reading her and pretending to be the kind of guy that she needed so that she’d trust him. That’s all he really wanted from her, her trust, that way it would make protecting her much easier. 

Somewhere along the way, their emotions starting influencing them, lines were blurred and then crossed. And despite every intention she had, she started to believe Mark wasn’t just some gangster who liked living on the underside of the law. She thought he wanted roots, but no, he didn’t want to be grounded or tied down. 

Men like him had wings and they wanted to fly without staying in one place for too long. 

She didn’t need to hear the voicemail to know that.

\-----

Jaebum whistled a soft song to himself as he walked into his house that night.

Tossing his keys aside, he flipped on the lights to illuminate his living room before flinching, “What the fuck, Mark?! What the hell are you doing here? How did you get in?”

Mark stared at him from his seat by the kitchen counter. “It was easy. You barely have any security.”

“Get out.” Jaebum barked.

Mark just blinked, “No, I don’t think I will.”

“What the fuck do you _want,_ Mark?” Jaebum snarled, walking up to him. 

When he got closer he noticed the bags under his eyes, the parlour of his skin and the tension straining his entire body, “I want a lot of things, buddy. World peace, eradicating poverty, ending racism. Oh boy, the list goes on and on. But there’s one thing I want from you, dickhead.”

“Big fan of nicknames, aren’t you?” Jaebum muttered as he pulled out a glass from his cabinet. “So, what is this thing you want from me?”

“How long have you been working with my Boss?”

It was a fraction of a second when Jaebum froze, his body stilling before he quickly recovered and lifting a crystal bottle filled with amber liquid, “I’ve been working with since I married Heiran.”

“Drop the act. I mean since when have you been going behind everyone’s backs to meet with him in private?” Mark snapped.

Jaebum set the bottle down and went to his fridge to pull out some ice cubes, “You’re not making any sense, Yi En.”

“Don’t call me that!” Mark yelled, grabbing the glass and whipping it at the wall next to Jaebum’s head. 

Jaebum ducked before staring at the glass shards that were not covering his kitchen floor with a tired sigh, “It’s been years.”

“Shut up. You don’t know anything about me or what the hell I’ve gone through these years.” Mark seethed, his hands fisted, “And answer my damn question.”

Jaebum faced him with a scowl, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Oh yeah? Then what did you talk to him about when you met him at the GOT7 headquarters in the middle of the night yesterday?”

Jaebum’s eye twitched, “You saw?”

Mark raised a brow, “That’s not an answer.”

“Huh, well, if you’re so curious, why don’t you go ask your Boss?” When Mark pursed his lips in response, Jaebum’s lip twitched up, “Oh, it looks like the right-hand man doesn’t trust his Boss anymore. That’s an unexpected turn of events.”

Mark pulled his gun out and cocked it before pointing it straight at Jaebum, “I’m not messing around Jaebum. Just tell me what the hell is going on. Why are the two of you meeting in secret?”

“You’re not going to shoot me Mark.” Jaebum said smugly.

Mark blinked at him before pointing his gun at Jaebum’s arm and shooting his arm. Jaebum yelled and stumbled back against his fridge before sliding to the ground. “What the fuck is wrong with you?!”

Mark tucked his gun into his belt before crouching down in front of Jaebum and pulling his sleeve up, “It’s not a deep wound, you’ll live.”

Jaebum panted as Mark grabbed a dish towel and wrapped it around his wound. Jaebum couldn’t mask the bewildered look in his eyes, “I can’t believe you actually shot me.”

“You stabbed me. I think we can call it even.” Mark muttered before sitting back on his haunches to stare at Jaebum who was wincing and grimacing in pain, “Are you working with him?”

Jaebum blinked up at Mark through his hair that hung over his eyes, “You’ve changed, Mark.”

“Yeah, I have.” Mark said quietly, “I’m not that little boy that let you beat on him just so you could get clout. I learned to fight back. I don’t pull my punches anymore.”

Jaebum scoffed, “You can’t still be hung up on that. That was over a decade ago!”

“I thought we were friends.” Mark growled. 

Jaebum just stared, “Friends? Mark, do you honestly think that under DS we could’ve stayed friends? The Bunker would’ve done this to us eventually, no matter how hard we tried. If anything, I did you a favour because you didn’t have to spend your entire adult life kissing up to a sociopath.” 

“You know what I went through.” Mark said softly, “I needed you and you abandoned me. Fuck you for acting like you did me a favour.”

Jaebum’s eyes widened before softening a fraction, “Well, I offered you a position with me.”

“Yeah.” Mark said with a dry laugh, “Because that’s what I wanted the most. To go back to you and DS and have to walk past The Bunker.”

Jaebum leaned his head back against the fridge, “Right, because GOT7 is so great. Because your Boss would never hurt you and always looks out for your best interests, right?”

Mark jaw tightened when Jaebum chuckled roughly, “You want to know about your great Boss? The one I meet with in secret? Fine. He’s trafficking.”

“Don’t lie.” He grunted.

“You think I give a fuck about lying to you? You think I care enough? Your Boss wants his territory to expand his business. He’s had the system for the last few years, selling people to the highest bidder. He was making more money from trafficking alone than he was with the rest of his operations combined. That’s why he’s growing so fast.” Jaebum explained. 

Mark’s hands started to shake and his heart raced as his skin began to grow cold, “No. That’s bullshit. You’re trying to get in my head. He wouldn’t go into trafficking. H-He swore he wouldn’t or else I’d walk. Of all the things he’d do, it would never be human trafficking.”

“Mar—“

He gripped Jaebum around the neck and squeezed, “Why were you meeting with him?”

“I can’t tell you.” He breathed out.

Mark tightened his hold before brandishing his gun with the other, “You don’t want to hold out on me. I can kill you and hide your body before any of your men notice you’re missing.”

Jaebum glared at him before his eyes darted to the gun, "Fuck, fine. I made a deal with your Boss. I’d give up some of his territory if he could get me back into Heiran life.”

Silence washed over Mark before his entire face darkened, “Are you joking? Is this some sort of a joke?”

“No.” Jaebum said, his shoulders falling, “He approached me first with the deal. He knew that I dated Heiran in the past. He must’ve been keeping an eye on her. He also knew that the relationship fell apart because of me. And he knew that I still had feelings for her so he offered me a chance at connecting with her again.”

“That’s…that’s insane. You thought that threatening her and making her think she was in danger would help her forgive you?” Mark asked, stunned.

Jaebum glared, “No. I was planning on scaring her and then coming to the rescue to try to save her and bring her under my care but then you kept getting in the way.”

Mark felt his head spin, “What about the threats? The guy that shot at her car, the kidnapping, your allies coming after her.”

“None of it was true. I orchestrated all of it with the help of her father.”

He was going to be sick, “So…your man being arrested because we didn’t clean the money…”

“Didn’t happen. There was no threat. Heiran wasn’t ever in any danger, there are no allies coming after her. Nothing. She was perfectly fine. We made it all up as your Boss’s side of the deal.” Jaebum admitted. 

Mark loosened his hold on Jaebum throat and closed his eyes, “When someone broke into her house?”

“It was just to scare her. I was supposed to drive by and make her think I scared the guy away but then you came running in your fucking socks.” Jaebum grumbled. "I don't know why your boss assigned you to help her because it just made my life harder."

Mark squeezed his eyes, “Two of your men tried dragging her off.” 

“They weren’t supposed to be rough with her. I wanted them to bring her to me so I could talk to her.” He said. 

Mark dropped from the heels of his feet to his knees, “You were willing to let GOT7 traffic in more territory just to get your ex-girlfriend back?”

“I was planning on double-crossing your Boss. Once Heiran trusted me, I was going to tell her what I knew about her father trafficking and I knew she’d go to the police.” Jaebum defended. "I'd take over GOT7's territory after."

He shook his head, “You got her to marry you.”

“There was no other way I could one up you. You had everything I wanted with her.” Jaebum shifted, hissing while gripping his arm. “If I married her, I’d have time to make it right with her. To show her how much I’ve changed and how much I loved her. And you wouldn’t be able to do a damn thing about it.

“I don’t believe you.”

Jaebum scoffed, “Well, I don’t know what to fucking tell you. I love her.”

“You might be telling the truth about what you did to Heiran but GOT7 isn’t into trafficking. You’re full of shit.”

“Look into it yourself, you’ll see. I tried to warn you, Mark. I told you once. I tried to get you out of there. You’re not my best friend anymore and I know you wouldn’t show up to my funeral if I died, but I was looking out for you.”

Mark looked away, his vision swimming. No. Jaebum _always_ tried manipulating him. He knew how weak and desperate Mark had been as a kid. How desperate he had been to be a part of something where he belonged. He was just trying to turn him against his Boss by using an old wound. 

He couldn’t let him get into his head. 

Mark turned back to face him. No longer did he see the intimidating leader of DS he had grown up with. He just saw a pathetic snivelling man who didn’t know when to let someone go.

“Her father never really wanted to reconcile with her, did he? It was just an act to get you into her life again. So he could control the situation and Heiran.”

Jaebum’s eyelids were heavy, “I don’t know. He never said anything to me about it.”

“But why would he play along? This entire thing was a lie but it got Heiran fired. He lost his biggest source for cleaning money. Without Heiran, he can’t use her company which means he can’t clean any money. Why would he risk all of that just for some territory?” It didn’t make sense to him. These were two of the biggest crime lords in the country, would they make such an uneven deal just based on their emotions?

Jaebum shrugged, “He never told me. He made the offer and I accepted. I didn’t ask questions, especially ones that could make him reconsider.”

Mark massaged his temples as he took a breath. This wasn’t what he had expected when he came here looking for answers. 

“Don’t tell Heiran, please.” Jaebum whispered.

“But you don’t even love her.” Mark said slowly, almost like a child.

Jaebum’s brows knit together, “What the hell are you talking about? Yes I do.”

“No, you don’t. Cause what you did? That shit isn’t love.” Mark said. 

Jaebum narrowed his eyes, “And what the hell do you know about love? You’ve never loved anyone in your life. Not even yourself.”

Mark stood and pulled Jaebum’s phone out of his jacket pocket and pressed it into his hand. He made a choice not to make any promises, “You should probably call someone for help before you bleed out.”

\-----

“Hey! I was actually just about to call you. Boss told me that you called in sick, which I think might be the second time in like 15 years. I was thinking about driving some soup over. What are you craving?” Jinyoung chirped.

Mark was pulling a sweater over his head before heading back out to his car, “Jinyoung—“

“Why do people even eat soup when they’re sick? I don’t think there’s actual scientific proof that it cures you. It’s just slightly nutritious hot liqui—“

“Jinyoung.” 

“What? Were you saying something?” Jinyoung asked, ending his rant short.

Mark jumped into his car and pulled out of the parking lot, “I’m not sick. I lied.”

“Oh.” He said before pausing, “Why?”

He tapped his fingers against the wheel, “I-It’s hard to explain right now. I need to confirm something first and I need your help.” 

“Shit. Okay, but is everything okay?” His voice sounded panicked. Mark rarely sounded frantic or stressed, it always made his heart race anxiously.

Mark sighed, “Honestly? I’m not sure. Either everything is okay or this is my worst nightmare and we’ve been lied to for a really long time.” 

“You’re scaring me, dude. What do you need me to do?” Jinyoung asked firmly.

“I need you to distract the Boss for a while.” Mark instructed.

Jinyoung laughed dryly, “Uh…I’m not that high up the ranks, Mark. I guess I can ask him to review some paperwork for me.”

“No, I need you to get him out of the building for at least an hour.” Mark pressed. He needed the time and space to find what he needed.

Jinyoung scoffed, “What? How am I supposed to do that? He’s not going to listen to me!”

“Please. I need you to try. I have to get into his office.” Mark pled.

Jinyoung’s eyes widened, “Woah, woah. You’re going to snoop around his office? Do you know what he’ll do if he catches you? Wait, is he why you’re on edge? 

“I promise I’ll explain everything later but for now, I just need you to do this and text me when it’s safe.” Mark instructed.

Jinyoung’s leg bounced nervously, “Why can’t you ask Heiran? I’m sure she’d have better luck.”

Mark felt his chest sink at the thought of her and the fact that she must’ve heard his voicemail by now but made no attempt to reach him, “It’s just easier if you do it.”

Jinyoung pressed his hand to his forehead, “That makes no sense.”

“ _Please_ Jinyoung.” Mark begged.

He sighed reluctantly, “Okay, I’ll try but I won’t make any promises.” 

“Thank you and don’t tell anyone about this.” Mark reminded before hanging up. 

\-----

“Hey, Jinyoung.” Heiran answered the call surprised. It wasn’t often he called her but the house had been silent since Lucy left for school. Mark hadn’t come to pick her up so Heiran had to drop her off herself and the rest of the day had been radio silent from him. 

He didn’t even check on her. Even if things were tense between them she always assumed he’d put it aside for his job. He had never gone dark on her without as much as a text message.

“What’s up?” She asked.

He cleared his voice, “Um, well this is a little weird but I have a pretty big favour to ask of you. It’s for Mark.”

“O-Oh, you spoke to him? He hasn’t contacted me all day.” She picked at a loose thread on her shirt and tried to be hurt by the fact that he was ghosting her. She was the one mad that him, shouldn’t _she_ be the one doing the ghosting.

“He’s sick.” Jinyoung explained.

That made her sit up, “Really? Is he okay? What’s wrong?”

Jinyoung felt bad lying but he had clear instructions from Mark, “He’s fine, it’s nothing but he asked me to get your dad out of the building of an hour or two, I think Mark’s sneaking back to work for something. The problem is that your dad couldn’t give a less of a shit about me and there’s no way I can convince him to just grab lunch me or something.”

“I see where this is going Jinyoung and the answer is a big fat no. I’m not getting lunch with my dad. We aren’t on the best terms right now…or ever.” She muttered.

“I know, I know. This is so hard on you, I’m sorry but Mark seemed pretty intense on the phone. I think this is really important for him and there’s no other option. Please? For Mark? You know he isn’t the type to ask people for help.” Jinyoung begged with nearly a whine.

That much was true.

She sighed, it wasn’t like she had anything else on her schedule and as upset as she was with Mark, she had to imagine this was important, whatever it was. “One hour tops.”

“Ugh thank you, you are a lifesaver. Call your dad and I’ll let Mark know when he’s gone. Just text me when he leaves the restaurant.” He said, relieved. 

“Fine. But Jinyoung, why would Mark need him out of the building if he was just going to sneak in to do work? Are you sure nothing’s wrong?” She was worried that for him to go silent on her and be sick, he was still working on something. All without letting her know.

A long silence ticked by before he cleared his throat, “Yup.”

Well, that didn’t sit well with her.

\-----

“I have to say, getting your call was a pleasant surprise.” Her father said with a smile as he sat across from her. 

She had picked a fancy restaurant that was known for its efficient service. The fewer opportunities for small talk, the better. She was just going to power through this meal and call it a day. 

“Being unemployed leaves me with a lot of free time on my hands.” She said while scanning through the menu. 

He picked up his menu as well, “I’m glad you chose to spend it with me. How’s the job hunt going?”

“Poorly.” She deadpanned. 

Her father cleared his throat, “My offer still stands, pumpkin. I reach out to my contacts and get you an interview.”

“Don’t bother.” She mumbled, “I’ll figure it out on my own and if anything, Mark said that he could connect me with people.”

She tensed after the words left her mouth. She was still mad at Mark and his strange disappearing act wasn’t appreciated. But she forgot how often she said his name in conversation. 

Her father must’ve noticed too, “You and Mark are really close. I can’t say that this didn’t surprise me. When I assigned him to you I thought that you couldn’t be more different from each other. Not to mention he works for me. All the makings of someone you wouldn’t get along with.”

“I guess I have an open mind.” She said casually. 

He set his menu down, “I never asked but are you seeing anyone?”

“Like…romantically?” She asked, shocked. 

Her father chuckled, “Yes, romantically.”

“Um, no. I’m not. Why?” She asked wearily. 

“I was just curious. There’s nothing wrong with me wanting to get to know more about your personal on the rare occasion that you’re letting me spend time with you.” He said gently. 

It would’ve been nice to live in a world where grabbing lunch with her father could be a warm and happy occasion. Looking around the restaurant, it was filled with people smiling and laughing, she wished she could be that carefree and happy with her present company. 

If she thought about it too hard she’d start to crumble at the thought of losing Mark, how he had disappointed her when she was sure that he’d be the one man who never would. Sitting here with her father and an unopened voicemail burning a hole in her pocket, she truly felt miserable.

“I guess not.” She said with an awkward nod.

Her father watched her face, “I thought you were dating that boy. The young one that sometimes babysits Lucy.”

“No, god. I’m not. He’s my best friend. Known him since college.” Her face soured at the thought of her and Yugyeom being romantic, made her skin crawl. 

He chuckled at her grimace, “Ah, I see. And Lucy’s father is…”

“Not in the picture anymore.” She replied bluntly. "I'm sure you know all about that."

Her father chose to ignore her jab, “Did you ever date anyone? I mean, after Lucy? Was there anyone?”

“I don’t know how I feel talking to you about this. Or did you forget how our last conversation ended? We’re not friends.” She muttered. 

“Right. Sorry.” He backed down, pulling his eyes back to the menu.

On cue, a waiter appeared and Heiran was relieved to order. Sitting across from her father she did her best not to look too closely at his face. She knew the minute she noticed any grey hairs or wrinkles that her resolve would start to shake. 

“Do you want some wine?” 

Her head snapped up, “Huh?”

“Wine? I overheard Mark mentioning that you appreciated good wine.” He offered. 

She gave him a tensed smile, “Sure. I’ll take a glass of anything.”

After the orders were in an awkward silence hung over their table. They tinkered with the cutlery and looked around the restaurant, trying to distract themselves with people watching. They seemed less like family and more like two strangers forced to sit at the same table. 

Could she forgive him? Could they start fresh with all the history between them?

“Actually…um. There was one guy.” She said. 

Her father looked up at her with a spark in his eye, “Yeah?”

“Yeah. In college. We dated for a while, it was a good relationship until it wasn’t.” She shared. 

He raised a brow, “What happened?”

“He lied to me.” She said blankly, “And he abandoned me. A reoccurring theme with the men in my life I guess.” 

He reached out and touched her hand, “I’m sorry that happened to you. But you never know, life has a funny way of bringing people in and out of our lives.”

“What does that mean?” She asked with a frown.

“It means if he hypothetically came back into your life, would you ask him to stay or leave? The answer to that question can bring you a lot of clarity.” He said with such tenderness that she didn’t think she had.

“Are you asking about my ex or about you?” Her eyes narrowed.

He chuckled, “I honestly just meant about your ex.”

“Well, I don’t know. I can let someone back into my life without trusting them completely. It doesn’t mean that things would be normal. It’s not as easy as me asking him to stay or leave. It’s more about what _he_ does once he stays.” She explained, “And anyways, sometimes the best people aren’t the ones that come back but the ones that fight to make sure they never leave in the first place.” She said pointedly.

He didn’t miss a beat, “What about you and Mark?”

She pulled her hand back sharply, “What _about_ me and Mark?”

“I didn’t really think about it but when we all met with Jaebum he said something strange about how odd your relationship with Mark is. It got me thinking.” He said slowly, brushing his fingers against the condensation on his glass of water.

“Mark and I are friends.” She stated, wondering why he was pushing the topic so much.

He quirked a brow and it made her twitch, “And nothing more?”

“Why would you ask that?” She snapped.

He seemed nonchalant even though his words were anything but, “No reason, I just don’t know how I’d feel if my number 2 guy was dating my daughter.”

“First of all, you have _no_ say in who I date. Second, you’re not my father, you’re basically just a sperm donor. And third, Mark and I aren’t dating.” She hissed. If they weren’t in public, her voice would be a lot louder.

He straightened up, “In any case, I’m glad.”

“Why?” She asked.

“He isn’t a good fit for you, that’s all.”

The audacity made her furious, he spoke with such finality like he had the power to make her do what he said, “What does that even mean? You don’t know anything about me.”

“But I know everything about Mark. And that man is not ready for a relationship especially if there’s a kid involved.” 

“H-How dare you! You were out of my life for almost 20 years and you think that you can like you know what’s best for me? And bringing up Lucy, like you know the first thing about being a good parent and making smart decisions.” She was appalled.

He looked stern and if he was a better father, she might’ve shrunk under his gaze, “I’ve always had my eye on you. You’re my daughter whether you like it or not so I know you well. I’ve watched over you.”

“But that doesn’t mean you really know me. You just know what you could see from a distance.” She hissed. She leaned back when the waiter came to their table to set their dishes down. 

She picked up her fork and poked at the meat. Her father went for his glass of wine first, sipping it thoughtfully, “Even if that’s true, I know he’d be no good for you. If you aren’t dating him, I don’t understand why you’re so defensive.”

“Because the fact that you’re saying this to me proves that you still think that I need to listen to you. I don’t want your advice and I don’t need you to look out for me as if you’ve been there when I needed you.” She hissed. 

Her father shook his head, “That boy is damaged, pumpkin. That’s why I took him under my wing, that’s why he’s so steady behind a gun and that’s why the smell and sight of blood doesn’t make him sick. Someone like him isn’t adjusted for a normal life with a family. He fits into GOT7 for a reason. So it’s a good thing you two aren’t an item.”

“Is this about his past with DS? Because he already told me about The Bunker.”

He froze, eyes darting to her face, “He told you?”

“Yes.”

He raised his brows, “I certainly didn’t expect that but still, this isn’t just about his time with DS. It’s much deeper and not something you should have to deal with.”

“There’s a lot I shouldn’t have had to deal with when I was much younger and had a lot less. I think I can make my own decisions.” She muttered before stabbing her fork through a stalk of asparagus.

He smiled despite her visible anger, “I’m just looking out for you, pumpkin. I always will.”

\-----

“Hi, Bambam, right?” Heiran asked cautiously. After the painful lunch finished with her father, she sent Jinyoung a warning text and decided to reach out to the contact that Mark had given her. 

She was still mad at Mark and she didn’t want to use his help at all but after meeting with her father, she realized she needed to get on her own two feet fast. If she waited too long, she was worried he would try to get involved just like he did all the times before. 

The man was clearly younger than her, not only in the way he looked but in how he dressed. He was wearing purple-tinted sunglasses and a dynamic patterned suit with a light peach shirt peeking through. The watch on his wrist alone could pay most people through the top university. 

He stood with a charming smile before holding his hand out, “Heiran, right? It’s good to meet you.”

“Likewise.” She said, taking his hand. 

They sat by a window of a coffee shop where he had suggested they meet, “So, Mark gave me a rundown of your situation. I’m not going to spare words, you’re in a bad way. Losing that amount of money from your last firm will make other major firms nervous about letting you handle their money and investments.”

She swallowed and let her hands drop to her lap to hide the way they shook. Her heart sank, this was the exact thing she feared, “Am I hopeless?”

“No, I like to think that there is no such thing as a hopeless cause. There are men who fucked up bigger than you that were able to bounce back better than ever.” He said, flipping through an expensive-looking leather-bound notebook. 

She scrunched her nose up, “Yeah but they were men.”

“True.” Bambam said with a little smile, “But I owe Mark a few favours and he isn’t one to usually cash them in. But he did for you. So, this is now on the top of my priority list.”

She gulped and shifted in her seat, “What exactly do you do?”

“I’m a business advisor. I usually work with actual companies to help them restructure or rebrand, usually after they face some sort of crisis.”

“So you don’t really do one on ones.” She confirmed. 

He gave her a half-smile, “Like I said, Mark doesn’t usually cash in favours. I owed him big time, I’d do whatever he needed.”

“What did he do for you?” She asked. 

He tilted his head, “You’re curious, aren’t you?”

“Just making conversation.”

He hummed and looked through his notebook, “Mark helped my cousin without telling him. Got in an accident and fucked up his arm and leg real bad, didn’t have the money to pay for the hospital bills and he didn’t tell me about it. When Mark found out, he came to me to get my cousin’s bank info and dropped a nice chunk of change for him. Told me to tell my cousin that I gave him the money.”

“Is your cousin Ten?” She asked curiously. 

Bambam stilled before peering up at her, “He took you to the racetrack?

“Yeah.”

“Huh.”

She blinked, “What does that mean?”

“Nothing. But yeah, Ten’s my cousin. Don’t tell him about the money, he idolizes Mark and if he finds out he gave him money without asking for it back, it’ll stress him out.” Bambam warned. 

She nodded slowly as Bambam scanned his notes, “I can put out some feelers, see who’s looking to hire. I can vouch for you with some employers which might help you get over the obstacle of what happened at your old job but I can’t guarantee it’ll be at a big company or even an executive position but it might get you back on the horse.”

“Do you think I’ll ever get back to where I was?” She asked. 

He closed his notebook and looked her dead in the eye, “I'm going to be honest with you, it doesn't look likely. There’s a chance that the only place that is willing to hire you won't have a lot of upward growth. You might not ever be a part of an Executive Board or C-Suite again. There’s only one guarantee.” 

“What is it?”

He smiled slowly, “You start your own firm.”

She scoffed, “I can’t do that. I don’t have the money or the basics for a startup.”

“Never say never, sweets. That’s what loans are for. And sometimes, all it takes is one client to give you the start you need. You never know until you fail.”

\-----

Mark glanced at his phone when a text came through from Jinyoung. 

**From: Jinyoung**

**He left. The secretary’s gone too.**

Mark tucked his hair under a black baseball hat and moved quickly through the building. Most of the members who worked out of the offices tended to follow a regular work day. They would leave for lunch around the same time unless they were working on something important. Which meant he’d be free and clear. 

He stepped on the floor and walked with purpose until he spotted someone’s head peaking over his laptop, “What are you doing here? I thought I asked you to keep him busy.”

Jinyoung’s eyes were wide, “Technically I did.”

“What did you do?” Mark hissed. 

Jinyoung smiled nervously, “Called Heiran.”

“Jesus fuck.” Mark muttered, “Why would you do that? She can’t stand her father now more than ever after she lost her job.”

“Woah. I had no idea. I just thought who better to ask the Boss out for lunch than his own daughter?” Jinyoung said sheepishly.

“And…and she agreed?” He asked warily as he moved from Jinyoung’s office to his Boss’s. 

Jinyoung trailed behind. “Yeah, she did. Are you surprised? She wants to help you.”

He wasn’t sure how much of that was true, “How much time do I have?”

“She said an hour tops.” Jinyoung confirmed.

He sighed and opened his office door and stepping inside. He had never been in alone, it was strange because it was like he could feel his presence lingering around, “Fine.”

Jinyoung rocked on his heels by the door watching as he pulled on gloves and began flicking through files and books, “Mark what are you doing?”

“Looking for answers.” He mumbled without lifting his head.

Jinyoung saw the tension in his friend’s back, the heavy set of his jaw and the almost frantic snap of his wrist as he scanned documents, “Can I help?”

\-----

Mark and Jinyoung worked methodically, scouring every inch of the Boss’s office looking for something, _anything_ to prove that Jaebum was just lying. Once he proved it, he was going back to his apartment and maybe put a deep bullet wound into his other arm.

Jinyoung looked over at Mark in concern. When Mark had given him the basic rundown of what Jaebum had said to him, he refused to believe it himself. There was no way that GOT7 was human trafficking for years without any of them knowing. But more than that, he refused to believe his Boss would do that to Mark. 

And it conceded him that Mark was deadly silent, just flipping through files before putting them back exactly where he found it. This time of revelation usually triggered a downward spiral. It wasn’t often that he and Mark got deep with their feelings but Jinyoung had gotten good at reading his friend without using words.

When Mark got quiet after bad news, it wasn’t a good sign. 

It usually meant his mind was racing to places that would cause him more harm than good.

“What are we looking for again?” He asked.

Mark moved to his Boss’s desk before powering up the computer, “Something to prove that GOT7 isn’t trafficking.”

“Or something to prove that we are.” Jinyoung didn’t know a fraction of what GOT7 does but he wouldn’t put anything past them. Mark’s desperate need for Jaebum’s words to be false was alarming to Jinyoung because he knew that if Jaebum was telling the truth, Mark would fall. 

Someone has sturdy and unshakeable as Mark would crash and burn into ash when he was finally pushed too far. And _this_ would definitely push his off the roof of a 50-story building.

Mark paused before glancing up at him, his eye twitched before he turned to the computer. “There’s a password. Fuck.”

“Don’t worry. I got it.” Jinyoung came around to the table before his fingers flew over the keyboard to override the password.

Make took over once they were logged in and began searching through files. Jinyoung watching out skeptically, “Do you think he’ll just name the file _Trafficking Plans_? What are you looking for?”

“I don’t know.” He muttered clicking on every file. 

Jinyoung glanced at his watch, “We don’t have that much time left and there are way too many files. We have to be strategic. He’d probably use some sort of a code. Every file is coded with something random.”

“He never tells me that sort of stuff. I can’t figure out his system.” He said. 

“Try something. Anything”

Mark’s fingers itched over the keyboard before a word popped into his head. 

_Pumpkin._

Only one file came up. 

“No way.” Jinyoung whispered. 

Mark felt his throat dry and his hand tremble as he opened the file up. 

Any hope of disapproval was thrown out the window when endless pictures of young men, women, girls and boys appeared on screen. Still, he opened each one up to look into the dead and sometimes scared look in the eye of every single person. 

Closing the windows, Mark scrolled to the end of the file where a text file was. He opened it and it was like a digital ledger. Names, ages, genders, locations and an amount of money. He compared the first few pictures to numbers and they matched up. 

“No.” Mark whispered. 

Jinyoung swallowed deeply, “There has to be an explanation.”

Mark sat still, staring blankly at the names and numbers, of people being treated like commodities to be bought, sold and bartered. All this time he justified the crimes he committed and helped commit because he thought he was fighting fire with fire. Doing business with other criminals. Committing crimes against other people committing the same or worse crimes. 

But these were innocent people, children, who were most likely kidnapped and tricked into a world that was going to _destroy them_ to the point where death was a better option. And he was an unwitting part of it. 

“Mark are you ok—“

He shot out of the chair, stumbling back like the computer was on fire. He could hear each breath he took in his ears as his head spun. He looked dazed, his eyes glazing over and gasps escaped him as he tried to even out his breathing. He moved further from the desk, dropping his head, squeezing his eyes shut and pressing his fists to his temples. 

“Mar—“

Before Jinyoung could reach out for him, Mark shoved him away and ran out the door.


	28. Twentyeighth

It had been two weeks and Heiran had heard _nothing_ from Mark.

Not a text, a call, or even a short visit. 

One minute he was there and the next he wasn’t. It was starting to scare her because Mark never disappeared for so long without giving her a heads up. It was bizarre, going from seeing him every second to nothing. 

She chewed her lip nervously as she paced around her living room. Even Jinyoung had gotten cagey with his responses whenever she tried to nonchalantly ask where Mark was. He’d say that Mark had urgent personal matters to take care of. 

He might as well tell her that it was classified information.

She could tell Lucy also got anxious and antsy when each day passed without Mark although she didn’t bring it up as much, it was clearly on her mind when Heiran was the one dropping her off and picking her up from school every day. 

Heiran played with her phone in her hands. Maybe it was in his voicemail. Maybe he told her where he was going. What if he wanted her to find him? Or maybe he left the city? What if something bad happened and he left her a voicemail asking for help. And she just let it still in her inbox for 2 weeks collecting dust…

Dropping down on her couch, she bounced her leg as she contemplated it. Jinyoung said he didn’t know when Mark would be back, could she wait an indefinite amount of time to get answers?

Taking a deep breath, she played the message and held her phone to her ear. 

_“Duchess, there’s a hundred things I want to say to you right now but I need to make one thing painfully clear…”_

\-----

Wiping tears wasn’t helping Heiran because they’d keep spilling down her face. She had listened to the message 3 times and each time her heart broke into smaller and smaller pieces. 

Mark was a lot of things, the pained strain in his voice wasn’t one of those things. 

“Fuck. Fuck!” She whispered as she grabbed her bag and keys. She opened the gates before scrambling to find her shoes. 

Dressed, she wiped her face with her sleeve in one last attempt before opening the door and stumbling back, “Jaebum? What happened to your arm?”

“Why are you crying?” He asked back, ignoring the look she was giving this thin cast. 

She stepped back, “I-I’m no—why are you here?”

“I wanted to talk to you. Can I come in?” He asked gently. 

She shifted from one foot to the others wishing she could just run off to find Mark, but instead she stepped to the side, “Yeah, come in.”

They sat next to each other on the couch, “Do you want something to drink?”

“Um…no I’m okay.” He looked a little confused as he watched her. 

She nodded, turning her phone over in her hands, “So, your arm?”

“O-oh, urhm, it’s nothing, it’ll be in a cast for a few more days and then I’ll be back to normal.” He explained. 

She puffed out her cheeks before nodding when silence fell over them, “Did you want to talk about something?”

The crease in his brow grew as his frown deepened, “Why aren’t you angrier?”

“I sorta gave up on being angry after we got married.” She grumbled. 

He narrowed his eyes, “Mark hasn’t talked to you yet?” 

“No, actually, he’s sorta been off the grid.” She said impatiently. 

Jaebum looked curious, “He hasn’t been in touch with you?”

“Not really, Jaebum what are you doing here? Please. Now isn’t the best time so if this is just a casual visit I really can—“

“No, it’s…um…I guess I sorta hoped Mark would’ve told you first, that way I wouldn’t have to say it out loud to you. I figured it would be a matter of time before you knew.” He stuttered. 

Heiran perked up, Jaebum rarely stumbled over his words, “Knew what? Jaebum what’s going on?”

He gulped and took a deep breath, “I realized that I only ever hurt you. Everything I've done has just hurt you more and more. I want to stop making you feel that way but maybe it's too late. I messed everything up too much. I think at this point all I could do to make it up to you is to come clean and leave you alone for good."

"I don't understand. What is this about?" She asked, surprised by his confession.

"It was all fake. There was never anyone coming after you, Seo. No threa—“

The sound of the doorbell ringing interrupted them, causing both to flinch back. Heiran’s eyes were wide, even though he only got a few words out, her mind was running. She stared Jaebum down, at the downcast of his eyes and the fist of his hand. 

It was fake? What did that mean? He already admitted that after he found out that she was the one who allegedly landed his man in jail he was pretending to go after her. She already knew that much was fake.

Was there more?

Before she could press him, the doorbell rang again. She gave him one more harsh look before opening the door to reveal Yugyeom. 

“Hey! Whose car is out there? Doesn’t look like Mark’s. Anyways, I brought you lunch, you’ve been quiet lat—what the _hell_ is he doing here?” He growled the minute his sights landed on him. 

Jaebum stood, “It’s been a minute, hasn’t it Yugyeom?” 

“I’m a cop now, I can arrest you.” Yugyeom blurted. 

Jaebum’s lip twitched, “So I’ve heard.”

“What are you doing here?” He asked with a glare. "Are you bothering her? I thought she told you to hit the road."

Heiran massaged her temples, “We were just talking. We have some things to work out.”

“You’re…no way. You’re married?” Yugyeom spat out when he saw the ring on Jaebum’s finger. “Who’s the poor woman who agreed to spend the rest of her life with you?”

Jaebum and Heiran both tensed, sharing a look before Yugyeom scoffed, “Some nerve you have, ditching her because you didn’t want to marry her only to show up in front of her married to someone else. Does your wife know you’re with your ex?”

“She does.” Jaebum said evenly. 

Yugyeom’s face started burning and Heiran was quick to intervene, “I’m fine, Yugs. Go home, I’ll talk to you tonight.”

She walked him reluctantly to the door, “Are you sure?”

“I’ll be fine. We’re just going to talk. I can handle myself...and him.” She reassured, “How’s work?”

He leaned against the door, glaring at Jaebum over her shoulder, “It’s fine. I finally got to do some profiling but it’s not what I normally do. It doesn’t really help the detectives unless they can find actual evidence though.”

“Is this for the gang case?” She asked softly, knowing Jaebum was only a few feet away. 

Yugyeom nodded, “Yeah, it’s harder than I thought. We only have theories.” 

“But aren’t you holding one of the members?” She pried. 

Yugyeom looked confused, “What are you talking about?”

“Don’t…don’t you have a member of one of the gangs in custody?” She said wildly.

He groaned, “I wish! Life would be so much easier. But sadly we have nothing on our side.”

That didn’t make any sense. The entire reason she was dragged into this whole mess was because her father said the police arrested a member of DS because of dirty money that was tied to her and GOT7. 

“Wait, so you haven’t arrested anyone?” She asked with wide eyes.

“No. Why would you think that?”

 _It was all fake_.

Jaebum wasn’t just talking about the threats and kidnapping. He meant everything. Everything that brought him and her father back into her life. The source of her nightmares, her fears, losing everything important to her. Every single thing that followed the fateful day her father showed up at her office.

It was all fake. 

“I just assumed.” She croaked out.

“You’ve been watching too many police dramas. It rarely works out that smoothly. I guess I’ll leave but are you sure you’ll be okay alone with him?”

“I’ll be fine.” She breathed out. 

Yugyeom pouted at her before sending a last glare at Jaebum before walking back to his car calling out a promise to talk soon. The minute she shut the door, Heiran turned to Jaebum with fire in her eyes. 

“Explain.”

\-----

He was sleeping. 

2 weeks of just sleep. 

But it didn’t help that much, no matter how many hours he spent knocked out under his blankets, Mark was still tired. 

The days faded and blurred together. Sometimes he’d wake up and see the sun bleeding through his curtains, other days he’d wake up in the pitch dark. Every now and then he’d see a plate of food by his bedside table, so he guessed Jinyoung was coming in. But it was hard. 

Hard getting out of bed, showering, eating. All of it. 

He just felt like sink, sink, sinking. 

And he’d let himself drown. 

So, he’d just bury himself under his covers, refusing to check his phone to check the date, time or if Heiran had responded to his voicemail. He knew she hadn’t, but seeing it with his own two eyes would be too much. 

In the span of 24 hours, he had lost grip of everything important to him. 

GOT7, his Boss, had done the unthinkable and Mark didn’t know what to do now that he knew Jaebum’s claims were true. He didn’t even bother telling anyone about his time off. He just vanished, although he was sure Jinyoung covered for him. 

Maybe he should just run. Pack a bunch of his bags and board a flight to somewhere far away. Start over. He could do it. 

Closing his eyes again, he let himself fall back into the darkness that started to replace sleep. 

He could do it. 

He just didn’t know if he wanted to. 

\-----

Usually, Mark would wake up on his own, slowly coming back to consciousness for a few hours before falling back asleep. But this time something else roused him. 

Soft giggling, whispered hushing, a weight being pressed against the mattress and gentle uncoordinated fingers poking his cheek. Flinching, his eyes peeled open. 

Was this another one of his dreams? 

Because there was no way he had actually woken up to the family he had always wanted. 

Lucy was sitting next to his head, wearing his leather jacket. It drowned her, you couldn’t see the tips of her fingers or the bottoms of her feet in it. When her eyes met his, she gasped and flung her little arms around his neck. 

“Mark! You’re awake!” She squealed into his ear. 

Dazed, he let a hand touch her back as she squeezed him tight. His eyes moved up and he felt his breath catch when Heiran smiled, tentative and warm from her spot on the edge of his bed. He hadn’t realized how long it had been since he last saw her. 

“You’re a hard man to find.” She whispered and he realized her voice was thick and cracked. Most likely from tears. 

Lucy sat back and pressed her palms against Mark’s cheeks, squishing his face, “We missed you!”

“We?” He repeated, his eyes drifting to Heiran. 

Heiran’s lips curled, “We.”

He smoothed his palm against the back of Lucy’s head, “I missed you guys too.”

“Lucy, why don’t you go watch tv? I’m going to help Mark.” 

Her eyes widened at the thought of watching tv on a weekday, “Can I?”

Mark nodded, “Of course, kid.”

Lucy shoved the arms of his leather jacket up her arms before running out of his room. A few seconds later, the sound of cartoons filled the room. Heiran looked at Mark, feeling heavy when she saw his sunken cheekbones and purple bags under his eyes. 

“How did you get into my place, duchess?” He asked, his voice groggy with sleep. 

Heiran inched closer to him, “Had Jinyoung give me his spare.” 

“Right.” He nodded, pressing his fists to his eyes. 

“Did you eat at all?” She whispered, cupping his face. She could feel the roughness on his chin from weeks of not shaving. 

Mark sat up, groaning as knots cracked in his back. “A little, I think. Not much.”

She curled her fingers into his hair before scrunching up her nose, “When did you shower last?”

“You don’t want to know, duchess.” He replied. 

She eyed him up and down before climbing out of the bed and pulling his covers back. “Come on, get up."

“Duc—“

“Nope. None of that.” She ordered before grabbing his arm and tugging him up, “Let’s go.”

Mark followed her into his bathroom, still reeling from the fact that she was standing in his house smelling the way that she did with that smile. Heiran closed and locked the door behind them before nudging Mark’s back against the sink. 

He took a sharp breath, the cold air nipping at him when she pulled his shirt up over his head. “What are you doing?”

“Helping.” She said before pulling down his sweat pants. “Shower with your boxers on. It’s going to be uncomfortable but it’ll probably make our lives easier.”

He gave her a look, “Why on ear—“

She dropped her dress to the floor and Mark flinched, struggling to handle being in close quarters with that much of her skin on display. She still had her underwear and bra on but these days, it was hard to be near even when she was fully dressed. 

Heiran brought the two of them into the shower before adjusted the temperature of the water that rained down on them. 

“C’mere.” She said softly. 

He moved under the water and watched Heiran fumble around for his shampoo. She reached up into his hair and he automatically dropped his forehead down onto her shoulder. He slowly wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close as she sunk her fingers into his hair.

Mark’s eyes fluttered close and a weak groan escaped his lips when she dug her nails into his scalp while she lathered his hair. His bones were turning into jello.

“Why are you being so nice to me?” He asked against the skin of her neck. 

She continued to massage his head, “Because I’m sorry for snapping at you and not letting you explain. I finally listened to your voicemail. I should’ve done it sooner but I was afraid of what you might say. I thought you purposely left me a message because it was something you couldn’t say to my face.”

“Technically I couldn’t say it to your face. I was being a coward. I was betting on you not listening to it for a while. Figured the distance would do us some good.”

She hummed, “And now we’re half-naked in the shower together, so how did that work out?”

She could feel his smile against her skin, “Pretty damn well, actually.” 

His hands wandered but never anywhere dangerous. This wasn’t a sexual moment between them. It was far more tender. He just held her tight, tucking his face against her neck and smoothed up and down her back. 

“I am sorry though, Mark. I’m just sensitive about that stuff and I assumed the worst. I’m not good at dealing with my insecurities and I shouldn’t have pushed you away like that.” She admitted. 

He pursed his lips out so he could kiss her shoulder. He was melting under her touch, he forgot how good it felt to be cared for, “S’okay, duchess.” 

She stepped back and guided his head back so that the water could wash off the foam. Heiran smiled at how he closed his eyes and gently stroked at his neck. Once it was all washed off, he brought his face back to her neck and she repeated her action but with conditioner. 

“What you said in your voicemail makes sense. Being scared about what this would do to Lucy and me. GOT7 is unpredictable. Especially knowing the lengths my father is apparently willing to go to. It was unfair that I kept pushing you when you were just trying to be thoughtful.” She said. 

She felt his stiffen against her before pulling away a little, “Your father?”

“Jaebum came by.” She shared. 

He scowled but gently pushed wet strands of her hair off her face, “Why?”

“To tell me the truth about…well, everything. The member of DS that was arrested, the threats against me as revenge, the DS allies coming after me, it was all fake. Just an elaborate plan to scare me back into Jaebum’s arms. And my father helped for his own gain.” She said. 

He blinked at her, “How are you so calm?”

“Because I’m standing in a warm shower with you, it's hard to be mad. But when I was with Jaebum he got an earful. I made my feelings very clear.” It included a lot of yelling, throwing, and hitting on her part. She vowed to never forgive and banished him from her sight, telling him never to speak or seek her out again. She never wanted to see him as long as she lived. Oh, and to get their marriage annulled. 

Mark was lost in thought as Heiran led his head back into her neck so that she could keep lathering the conditioner in. “Jaebum did say that he did it partly to help me sever ties with my father. Jaebum thought if we got back together he could block my father from me for good. He was vague but he said that my dad wasn’t the man I thought I knew. That he was worse. He said he was into some really sick shit and that he had been using me. Tha—That he never loved me or wanted to make things right.”

“I’m so sorry, baobei.” He whispered, holding her close. 

She shook her head, “It’s okay. It’s not your fault. I never fully trusted my father but there were these moments where sometimes I thought we could rebuild things. That I could maybe fix things with my only living parent. I thought I saw glimpses of a real father. I guess I was wrong.”

He just made a sound of understanding and dragged his nose up and down her throat. The warm water made her skin soft and smooth to the touch, it was so humanizing and grounding to be here with her.

“If he’s just using me to get more territory or try to control Jaebum then I don’t know what else he’s capable of doing.” She admitted before bringing his head back to the water to wash out. 

A fond smile curved up her lips as she slicked back his freshly washed hair. He was so beautiful it made her a little silly, “I think you’re all done.”

Mark blinked down at her before cupping her face. Two weeks of feeling miserable and empty were completely wiped out the minute he was around her. She made him so fucking whole. He liked her so goddamn much.

“I missed you.” She said gently. “So _fucking_ much.”

His breathing came out more as a shudder. Would he be able to stand in this shower again and not think about her hands on him and her heartbeat against his chest? “Me too.” 

“And I can shower by myself.” He mumbled. 

She wound her arms around his waist and smiled up at him, “I know, but isn’t it better this way?”

Seconds passed before he winced, “Do we have to talk about me calling you baby girl?”

“We don’t have to, but I certainly _want_ to."

\-----

“Why is your hair wet, mom?” Lucy asked when Mark and Heiran stepped out of his room. Her bra and underwear were drying over his heater and he had leant her a sweater to wear over her dress. 

Her hair, on the other hand, was harder to cover up, “I accidentally got it wet.”

Lucy looked confused but Mark distracted her, “Want to help make some lunch for us?”

“Yes!”

Making and eating lunch plus the excitement of being at his apartment again had tired Lucy out faster than normal. Mark had tucked her into his bed, cracking the door open just enough that Heiran could see her. The two of them huddle up on the couch speaking softly to one another. 

“So what happened?” She asked. “You were in bed for two weeks. I’m sure it takes a lot to get you there.”

He shook his head, “It’s not important.”

"If it upset you, then it's important." She said sternly.

He hesitated but didn't ignore the little bit of tension that unwound in his chest.

“Does it have to do with seeing Jaebum again? Did he say something about your childhood?” She prodded.

He sighed, “Something like that. Yeah, I guess."

“You can talk to me about anything. I know people say that all the time but I mean it. I know you like to keep things inside and you don’t want to make your problems my problems but…talk to me.” Her fingers tangled with his.

His forehead creased like he was fighting off a headache, “You know how Jaebum told you that your father did this all for more territory and that he’s involved in some sick shit?”

“Yeah?”

“Well, apparently for the last few years your father has decided to venture into the lucrative world of human trafficking.”

Heiran felt her blood run cold.

“None of us knew. Or at least Jinyoung and I didn’t. Jaebum warned me about it when you were kidnapped but I thought he was just trying to mess with me. But when you went to lunch with your dad I went through his office and it’s true. “

She shivered at the thought, “Oh my god. That’s, fuck, that’s awful. Why did he hide it from you?”

“We had a deal, I would join GOT7 on the condition they never got involved in trafficking.” Mark worded out carefully.

She gulped, “Why make such a specific deal?”

“Because my parents sold me to a similar ring when I was 9.” He said bluntly.

Her stomach dropped and her fingers instantly dug into his arm. “They owed money to people they couldn’t payback. So they sold me to settle their debt. I guess I was lucky, I know what happens to some kids but not me. I was sold to a ring that treated kids like fighting dogs. They’d put us in a ring and we’d fight each other. Spectators would make bets. Then we’d be kept in these tiny rooms like animals.”

Heiran leaned her head against his shoulder and started to cry, but that didn’t stop Mark, “The old DS came to one of the fights a few years later. He saw me and must’ve seen some potential, so he bought me off of the man that my parents sold to. He made his gang sound so nice like they were this family that look out for one another. I wanted that so badly, I wanted a family that actually cared about me and would fight to keep me. I didn’t care where I had to go to find it, I just wanted to leave the hellhole I was in. But then you know what happened there. GOT7 was better, I was lucky with them, but the Boss knew where I came from. I told him I couldn’t be a part of a gang that does the same thing that I went through but to other kids. It was a deal-breaker.”

“And now they broke the deal.” She realized what this meant.

He clenched and unclenched his fists, “I never thought this would be the reason I’d leave GOT7.”

“You’re going to leave?”

He hummed and closed his eyes, “Hearing that someone I trusted and looked up to turned on me and lied to me by doing the one thing I begged him not to. It fucked me up. That’s why I disappeared. All the memories were coming back and I couldn't cope.”

“Is that why you have so many scars?” She asked quietly. 

He nodded, “Yeah. Half my life was about getting scars. The other half was about getting tattoos to cover them up.” 

She trailed her fingers across the ink as if it to thank the drawings for the peace of mind it gave him over the years.

“Sometimes I resented you when I saw you with Lucy.” He continued, “Because you were proof that there were good mothers out there. Selfless, loving, amazing mothers and that I had shitty luck to get parents that sold me off at the first sign of trouble.”

She pressed her lips to his shoulder, “You didn’t deserve that though, you know that, right? You didn’t do anything wrong. Your parents failed you. You’re a good person, Mark. God, you’re such a good person. I think it every single time you’re around me but I never say it out loud but it’s true. You’re so, _so_ good."

“There’s a difference between being good and being good enough.” 

“Well, you’re both.” She whispered, “You’re good enough for me."

His eyes fluttered close, “It kept me up at night. Thinking about you finding out. I would think _she probably thinks you’re a monster, being raised to fight. Only ever fighting. She thinks you’re some sort of violent animal_. My Boss and the old DS made me feel like I would harm anyone in my life. I don’t know, sometimes I believe it myself. The only reason the old DS and your father gave me a chance is because they probably saw something broken inside me. Something…violent and psychotic.”

“No.” She whimpered. “No.”

He dropped his head, “I didn’t want to do it, you know. I didn’t want to hurt people, I didn’t want to punch them or fight them and I sure as fuck didn’t want to kill them. I just wanted to survive and I just wanted to belong somewhere for the first fucking time in my life.”

“I know, baby.” She whispered, “I know. But you belong somewhere now.”

He nodded, “That’s why I felt so loyal to GOT—“

“No.” She interrupted, “You belong with me. With Lucy. With Jinyoung, Taeyong, Star, Ten, Bambam. With all the good people in your life that love you for you and not for what your hands do. That’s the only place you belong.”

He squeezed his eyes shut, his body trembling before stillness washed over him. He nodded slowly before wiping at his face.

She watched him come down before asking, “What are you going to do?”

“What can I do? I’m going to leave. After everything I’ve done for GOT7, after all that I’ve given up, I’m not going to let them use me to push their agenda. God knows how many assignments I was sent on that were tied to their trafficking system. I made my terms clear.” He said dryly. “I don’t ask for much, so if he’s going to betray me like that, then I’m not going to be loyal either.”

She watched his face. “That’s not enough though, is it? To just walk away and let them continue?”

“How am I supposed to leave and move on knowing that my former gang is preying and kidnapping young kids to sell them off? But I can’t. I can’t stay. I need to leave. There’s nothing else I can do.” He said, exasperated. “It’s not like I can appeal to his human side.”

“Unless…”

He looked over at her with a raised brow, “Unless…”

“Unless we take the bastard down ourselves.”

\-----

The sun had long set and Heiran was numbly watching the news on Mark’s couch, her fingers combing through his hair. He had fallen asleep next to her until she brought his head to her lap where he could be more comfortable. 

Shortly after they decided that instead of backing down, they were going to figure out a way to make GOT7 and her father pay for what he had down, he had asked her to stay the night. The adrenaline of coming up with a plan drained them but she wanted to make sure that when he woke up, he didn’t change his mind. Her plan was an ambitious one that wasn’t very well thought out.

She used to think that she was dealt a bad hand, but Mark was given a way worse one. He deserved so much more than he was given. If he had different parents, maybe his life would’ve been one without so much pain. No wonder he was willing to find a family anywhere and no wonder he was so loyal to GOT7. 

A timid knock on the door had Heiran maneuvering around Mark’s head, tucking a pillow under it and walking over. She glanced through the screen before frowning. 

She opened the door with a scowl, “No.”

Jaebum’s eyes widened, “What are you doing here?”

“I should be asking _you_ that. What right do you have to show up at his door? After everything you put him through?” She hissed. 

Jaebum rolled his eyes at her, “I’m not going to apologize to you anymore when it’s clear you don’t want to hear it, but I need to talk to him.”

“No.” She barked. “He’s been through enough.”

Jaebum glared, “I’m here to o—“

“Why are you making so much noise?” Mark rumbled as he walked up to Heiran while rubbing his eyes. He spotted Jaebum by the door and sneered, “Great.”

“Just hear me out. Please.”

Heiran was about to slam the door in her face but Mark brushed his fingers against her hand to stop her, “Fine, but be quiet. Lucy’s sleeping.”

Jaebum stepped in and Mark moved to the kitchen, pulling out glasses. It was beyond her why Mark was being hospitable to Jaebum but she figured that maybe Mark felt grateful that Jaebum told him the truth when no one else would. 

“Make it quick.” He ordered while pouring water. 

“I want to help.” Jaebum stated confidently. 

Mark blinked at him, “Help with what?”

“I fucked up. With both of you. More ways than I can count and I’m probably beyond the point of making it up to you. But I don’t want to be this greedy person who steamrolls over everyone to get to the top. I've already destroyed two relationships with people I cared about. I hate the way it feels. I don’t want to end up like your Boss. I’m not saying we have to be friends, but whatever you need, whatever you’re planning on doing, I want to help. I want to be on your side.” He said, catching his breath. 

Mark and Heiran had stopped moving, both staring at Jaebum, bewildered, “You want to help us…?”

“I know this might seem self-serving but it’s not. I swear.” Jaebum's promise sounded more like a desperate plea. "I just can't stop this sick guilt-ridden feeling in my stomach. So whatever you're doing, I want in."

Heiran narrowed her eyes, “What if we wanted to go after GOT7 and take them down?”

“I’d do it.” He said quickly. 

Mark scoffed but Heiran was intrigued, “What if it meant DS went down with it?”

“I’d still do it.” Jaebum breathed out. 

Mark set a glass down in front of Heiran before crossing his arms, “It’s not going to matter, anyways. We can’t even take GOT7 down if we tried. GOT7 is a huge organization, there’s three of us. What exactly are we going to do? Call the cops?”

“You’re not that far off, Yugyeom’s already investigating, I’m sure we can lead them to the headquarters easily.” She suggested.

Mark shook his head, “No, not easily. GOT7’s headquarters is masked as a private consulting firm. If the cops raid the place, they’re going to cover it up. They’ve prepared for this. They have contacts everywhere, they’ll know what's coming and cover their tracks. This isn't their first time facing off against the cops.”

Jaebum tapped his lip in thought, “You have to target a specific leg of GOT7 and the rest will collapse. For example, try to get GOT7 caught on trafficking charges. They’re still new at it and most likely don’t have a foolproof system yet. If we can connect GOT7 to the missing victims and prove that they were involved, we can give that to the police.”

“That’s an impossible task. There’s no way I can get a copy of his files. Everything is locked up tight, if I so much as move a file from one folder to the next on his computer, he’ll know and he’ll erase all evidence before we can go to the cops.” Mark said cautiously. 

“Then we get creative.” Heiran said, “No matter how hard it might be, we have the element of surprise. My father has no idea that you know about his new hustle or that Jaebum has been giving us information. We have time to come up with a plan. We just need to act like things are normal.”

“Maybe even see if that nerdy friend of yours is willing to jump ship as well." Jaebum recommended. 

Mark looked unsure, “I don’t know, guys. There’s going to be so much fallout and collateral if we end up being successful and if we fail, it might be even worse.”

“Are you having second thoughts?” Heiran asked softly. “I know you feel like you owe GO—“

“No. It’s not that. I’ve paid back my debt to GOT7 and even if I hadn’t, the minute he decided to get involved in trafficking, he knew he’d lost me. He was willing to give me up for an easy paycheque. He’s no better than my parents. Any allegiance I had towards GOT7 is gone now." 

“Then that settles it.” Jaebum said firmly. 

Mark shot him a look, “Listen, I don’t care what declarations you make, you’re on thin ice with us. You like playing both sides so if you think I won’t have my eye on you, you’re insane. If I even catch wind of _gossip_ that you’re meeting up with The Boss, then I’ll kill you.”

“Go ahead. I’ll prove myself. This isn’t just about me and you, GOT7 and DS. This is about the fact that he fucked you over and whether you like it or not, I give a little bit of a shit about you. And I’m not letting a fucking trafficker get anywhere near Lucy.” Jaebum vowed. 

“Holy shit.” Heiran breathed out. 

Both men turned to her but she just walked to the tv, picked up the remote and raised the volume. 

“Today in business news, Jackson Wang has been announced as the new interim Vice President of Finance of one of the biggest investment firms in the country. This news comes after the sudden departure of the previous VP who had been said to have left the company after losing a multi-million dollar merger. Earlier today th—“

“Oh my god.” Mark muttered behind her, “How is that even possible?“

“This was his plan all along.” She whispered, “He wanted to get me fired to replace me with his own man.”


	29. Twentyninth

Jinyoung walked in from lunch while checking his phone for the hundredth time. 

Mark was being suspiciously silent, so was Heiran. 

But honestly, he was glad for the break, it had given him time to absorb the bits and pieces of information that Mark had told him about. 

Trafficking. 

He had trouble sleeping ever since he found out. Maybe it was hypocritical and ironic for a career criminal to suddenly have morals in the face of other different types of crimes. 

But GOT7 had been different. They only existed in the underworld and it was uncommon that what they did down here affected people above ground. Except maybe when it came to their drug operations. 

Jinyoung had made peace with the crimes he committed behind his computer screen and the more violent ones that Mark committed behind a gun. Mark didn’t go on shooting sprees on innocent people and Jinyoung wasn’t stealing identities from poor old people. 

So, he never felt guilty. 

But trafficking? 

Those were innocent people. Kids. Teens. 

Mark was trafficked. 

The reminder of his friend’s past made him even more nauseous. It had sickened him when Mark had confided in him about his past. Now GOT7 was doing the same thing but to other people.

He couldn’t even imagine what his friend was going through. It was hard being there for Mark when he just curled into himself and shut the rest of the world out.

He nudged the door to his office and stepped in, still lost in his thoughts when Yeonhee stood up, “God! You scared me.”

She grinned, watching him move to his desk, giving her a wary stare, “You took a long lunch.”

“I’ve been working overtime lately. I think I earned it.” Jinyoung said flipping open his laptop, “What’s up?”

She rocked on her heels, “Um…do you want to get ice cream together again?”

Jinyoung froze before looking up at her. She smiled softly and he felt his throat close a little, “You—Really?”

She tucked some hair behind her ear and looked at him, almost shyly, “Yeah, I mean, I had fun last time and if—if you don’t want to, that’s totally cool too, I know you just came back from lunch and you’re probably full and have a ton of work, so maybe nevermi—“

“Give me 10 minutes.” He blurted abruptly. 

Her eyes widened, “Okay, um, are you sure?”

“Yeah.” He said with a smile, “I have to check on some stuff but I’ll come by your office and we can go.”

She bit down on her bottom lip, her face flushing, “Alright then, I’ll see you later.”

“Yeah, you will.” He tossed back with a sparkle in his eye. 

Yeonhee stepped out and closed the door to his office. She leaned her head against his door and held back her smile. She felt so giddy and nervous, it was such a new feeling that it took her by surprise. She wasn’t used to feeling good. 

This was Jinyoung. 

Park pain-in-her-ass-since-the-day-she-walked-in Jinyoung. 

He was the guy she barely spoke to aside from sarcastic barbs and the occasional roll of the eyes. He was the guy that followed Mark around like a shadow, a shadow she barely noticed when she was too busy chasing after someone else. But the last few months around him had redirected her line of sight.

Suddenly he was Park Jinyoung, the guy with a cute smile, pretty lips, and knew her better than anyone. 

Shaking her head, she turned and gasped when she bumped into someone. Her lips curled into a snarl, ready to tell whoever it was to watch where they were going until she lifted her head and her Boss stood behind her, watching her. “Sir.”

“Yeonhee. I feel like we never really got to speak much to each other.” He said slowly. 

She blinked, he never spoke to anyone aside from the few he kept close by his side. She isn’t nearly important enough, “That’s—that’s true, sir.”

“I’d like to speak to you about an opportunity for you and based on how that conversation goes, maybe we can discuss where you see yourself in the future with GOT7 and what steps we can take to make sure we can get you there.” He said. 

Her lips parted in shock, it had been a dream of hers to move up the ladder from a lowly money cleaner to someone more essential, “That would amazing, sir.”

He nodded and started walking to his office, “Follow me. There’s a lot you need to be filled in on.”

“Yes, sir.” She said, quickening her pace so that she fell in stride with him. 

He glanced at her from the side of his eye, “But first, what I’ve been hearing is that you used to be in a relationship with Mark. Is that true?”

\-----

Jinyoung frowned when he walked to Yeonhee’s office and found it empty. He called her a few times and each time it went to voicemail. 

He lapped the entire floor in case she was talking to someone else but no one had seen her. He sent her a few texts and waited in her office a couple more minutes before sighing and heading back to his. 

He was being stood up. 

It should’ve been obvious. It was too good to be true that Yeonhee had suddenly seen him in a different light and wanted to spend more time with him outside of the office. She probably wasn’t ready for it. Or hell, maybe she saw affection in his eyes when he agreed and it freaked her out. 

What was he thinking?

\-----

Heiran was sitting on Mark’s couch, replaying the press announcement of Jackson taking over as VP of Finance. 

A job that took her years to get, he had just walked into with zero experience, zero. background, hell, he was a gangster that specialized in weaponry. 

So why was he shaking hands with her CEO while dressed in a fancy three-piece suit?

“How is this possible?” Jaebum asked, standing next to the couch, watching the report.

“Jackson’s not answering his phone. No one is. They’re probably being briefed.” Mark muttered while tucking his phone away. 

She turned to look at him, “Shouldn’t you go and find out what’s happening?”

He glanced at Jaebum before looking at her, “I can always get Jinyoung to fill me in. I can go if that’ll make you feel be—”

“No!” She blurted before her shoulders sagged, “No, stay.”

Jaebum looked back at the screen, away from the way Heiran stared up at Mark, “They filled your position with Jackson, why would they do that?”

“They now have someone on the inside. They don’t need a fake company like SmartLogic to trick anyone like they needed when GOT7 was using Heiran. Any money laundering or other illegal activities they want to do they’ll just get Jackson to do it as the VP of Finance. They’ll have free rein to use your company however they want.” Mark explain. “It has to be that.”

Heiran ran her fingers through her hair, “So he did all of this, all of SmartLogic and the merger was just to get me fired.”

“That doesn’t make sense.” Jaebum said in confusion.

“Yes it does.” Mark said, “This must’ve been his backup plan. If you retaliated, he would’ve gotten you fired.”

Heiran scowled, “But I wasn’t retaliating.” 

“No, but he probably wanted direct control if he’s expanding his trafficking ring. He’s probably getting a lot of dirty money fast and not enough power to clean.” Jaebum reasoned. 

“How can we be sure?” She asked. 

Mark crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, “I texted Jinyoung to fill me in as soon as possible, so we’ll know for sure, soon.”

“How did he even get hired?” Jaebum asked, “Isn’t there a whole complicated process for that?” 

She nodded, “Yeah, it’s a thorough one too. There are 4 rounds of interviews, background and credits checks. All of it.”

“But it probably isn’t hard to fake that stuff.” Jaebum said, running his fingers through his long hair.

Mark shook his head, “You’re right but it still doesn’t make sense.”

“What doesn’t?” Jaebum looked unimpressed. 

Heiran chewed on her nail, “It’s not like he was hired as a researcher or manager. He’s an executive. That’s a tight knit circle. They don’t just let any random person join, even if they’re highly qualified. Usually, they hire internally, you know, training people for executive roles. And if they ever went external, they would rely on some sort of connection.”

“You’re saying for them to hire Jackson, an external candidate, it’s likely he knew someone who could vouch for him?” Jaebum asked.

Heiran’s eyes widened with realization, “Exactly.”

Jaebum made a face, “But who would vouch for him? Anyone who knows him well enough would know he’s shady and no one would vouch for someone they don’t know well. ”

“Maybe someone owed him or GOT7 a favour.” Mark suggested. 

Heiran nodded, “That makes the most sense because he would’ve easily failed the background checks. If anyone on the hiring committee asked a friend if they knew a Jackson Wang, it would all fall apart.”

“Who is it then?”

Mark’s eyes widened when the camera panned out and right behind Jackson stood the VP of Legal, “Fuck, what about him?”

“That prick.” She seethed, “I wouldn’t be surprised. I’m sure he’s into sketchy shit.”

“Okay, hang on Mr. & Mrs. Smith. You can’t just accuse someone just because you recognize him. We need to prove that he’s the reason Jackson moved into your seat and then we can put some pressure on him and get him to talk.” Jaebum held his hands out as if the two of them were about to go at the man through the television swinging. 

“But then what?” Heiran asked softly, “What is our goal, here?”

“To get proof that GOT7 is trafficking and go to the police with it.” Jaebum explained.

Heiran rubbed her eyes, “How will figuring out Jackson’s connection help us do that?”

“We can get more information out of him because he must know something about what Jackson’s going to be doing. He’ll probably be easier to crack than someone from GOT7 who knows how to stay off the radar.” Mark reasoned. 

“Are you going to try going into his office again?” She asked. 

Mark nodded, “I’m going to sneak in tonight.”

“Won’t that be enough?” She asked hopefully. 

Mark looked unsure, “Probably not. If we give the files over to the police they can’t prove that they originally came from GOT7.”

“You could have a hard copy, give it to the police and then tell them to go raid GOT7’s headquarters.” She offered. 

“No, the minute we _speak_ to a cop, we have to assume that GOT7 will be on the move covering up their tracks. Same goes for his computer, the minute I’m out of there, we have to act like I’ve declared war on them. He’ll know I made copies of his files.” Mark grumbled.

“Unless your nerd friend helps.”

“His name is Jinyoung.” Heiran snapped. 

Mark’s lip twitched, “I don’t know, this is a lot to ask of him. He might not like what GOT7 is doing but I don’t know if he’s ready to turn on them.”

“Can you…can you at least ask?” She asked timidly. 

“He doesn’t have to be in there with you, he can just help disconnect any security measures on his computer. Cause I don’t think we have enough to declare war just yet.” Jaebum addedl.

Mark gave in, “Fine. I’ll talk to him and see what he says.”

She scratched the back of her neck, “So what are we going to do after we get the files since we can’t take it to the police yet?”

“We confront Jackson.”

Heiran’s jaw dropped, “Are you crazy? He’s not going to talk, you just said he’s going to be hard to crack. If we confront him then GOT7’s going to know exactly what we’re up to.”

“He’s the face of his operation right now. Once Jinyoung confirms everything, we have to corner Jackson. If we can get him to admit that he’s with GOT7 and that he’s using your company as a front, that might be enough to take to the police.” Mark explained calmly. His own nerves were jumping.

Heiran looked skeptical, “Like record a confession? Isn’t that risky?”

“No, Mark’s right. Jackson is a public figure now. His face is everywhere, it’ll be hard for him to run. And the more detailed the proof we give the police, the better. That way they won’t waste time going after them.” Jaebum said. It was strange to see them on the same side, agreeing. 

Mark looked over at her, “It will tie GOT7 to the trafficking files we have.”

“Yeah, okay, I guess that makes sense.” She hugged herself tightly.

“We could get Yugyeom involved.” Jaebum suggested.

She shook her head violently, “Absolutely not. We only get him involved when it comes to turning in the evidence but not at all before, it’s too dangerous.”

“He’s a cop, Seo.”

“Still!” She yelled.

Jaebum held his hands up and stepped back, “Fine.”

“Oh, it’s Jinyoung. I gotta take this.” Mark held up his ringing cellphone before stepping into his bedroom.

Jaebum sat down next to Heiran and laced his fingers behind his head. She sighed and shut off the tv, “I hope this works. It’s starting to feel really ambitious and Lucy’s still involved.”

“You should probably take her out of school for a while.” He suggested. 

Her body sagged and everything drained out of her, “Yeah, you’re right.”

“It’ll be okay, Seo. Don’t worry. We’re not going to let anything happen to you or her.” He said, putting a hand on her shoulder, squeezing her gently.

She gave him a blank look, “You don’t know that for sure.”

“As long as Mark’s around, actually, I _do_ know for sure.” Jaebum said with a snort.

She sat up a little and tilted her head, “Huh?”

“I never thought I’d see him love a woman so strongly.” Jaebum muttered near her ear.

She blinked and looked over at Mark who she could see pacing back and forth past the gap in his bedroom door. 

“He doesn’t love me.” It was a knee-jerk reaction to deny anything deeper could exist even if she wasn’t entirely sure if that was true.

Jaebum had a knowing smile that looked a little sad if you paid close enough attention, “He must, because he hates me, he can’t stand me but he hasn’t left the room because he doesn’t want to leave you alone in case something bad happens. Mark is someone who ejects himself from situations he doesn’t like, forcing himself to be in the same room as me? He’s doing that all for you, Seo.”

She pressed her lips tightly together and just stared at Jaebum. It sort of made sense why he chose to stay instead of going to the meeting. But Mark didn’t love her. He liked her…a lot. But that’s a long stretch between like and love. 

“Fuck!” Jaebum boomed with a laugh. 

She jolted and peered up at him wearily, “What is it?”

He shook his head in disbelief and almost amusement, “I’m a cocky prick, Seo. You know that better than anyone. I was going to parade in here with the total knowledge that I could win you back, but then you went and chose the one guy that I would never have a chance against. Anyone else? I’d beat them. But you found Mark. How the fuck was I supposed to compete with him?”

“What does that mean?” She asked.

“I could have everything in the world but I’d never have the fraction of genuine-ness that Mark has.” He said wistfully.

She watched his face, one that she used to know like the back of her hand that now felt so foreign,“Is this you throwing in the towel?”

“I don’t think I’d ever give up on you, Seo. But I’ve been hurting you, I guess I never stopped hurting you. I don’t want to do that to you anymore.” He admitted.

Mark walked back into the room, “That was Jinyoung. He confirmed pretty much everything we guessed. Jackson is a plant and he’ll be handling all of GOT7’s dirty money. Like all of it. When you worked there you only handled some of our money. He’s managing it all through your company. Jinyoung couldn’t confirm if it’s related to the trafficking but the Boss said it was because of some new ‘business ventures’ so I think we can assume we’re on the right track.”

“Doesn’t that mean Yeonhee’s out of a job? Was she the cleaner?” Heiran asked.

He nodded, “Yeah, Jinyoung mentioned she wasn’t at the meeting today.”

“Gang members don’t get fired though. They get reassigned.” Jaebum said with a raised brow. 

“Jinyoung also said that he’s willing to help me out tonight. I don’t know if this is a one-time thing with him but he’ll help me get in and out of the headquarters and computer without being detected. He seemed aggro so I guess he’s in the mood to start a coup.” He said, rubbing the back of his neck.

Heiran shook her head, “Wow, okay good, I guess. This is happening really fast.” 

Mark narrowed his eyes, watching her closely, “Duchess, do you mind if I talk to you privately?”

Jaebum stiffened, “How about I do you one better? We can call it a night and meet up again tomorrow. Just keep me in the loop with how it goes tonight. Hit me up if you need help or an extra set of hands.”

Mark raised his brows, “You’re offering?”

“I told ya’ll, I’m on your side.” He said while standing.

“I’ll keep it in mind.”

“I’m going to check on some of my safe houses, I have a feeling we’re going to need them soon.” He said. He glanced at Heiran opening his mouth to speak before thinking better of it. He just nodded and close the door behind him. 

“What’s wrong?” She asked, watching him worriedly. 

“Nothing.” He said while sitting next to her. His fingers finding home in her hair once he was settled beside her, “But are _you_ okay? This is…a lot.”

“It is, isn’t it? I don’t know. I’m freaking out because it’s like you said, we’ll be declaring war and Lucy might be a casualty. I don’t have enough time to feel ready for what’s about to happen.” Her mind was all over the place. It felt like one minute she was standing in a shower and the next she was teaming up with Mark and Jaebum to take down one of the largest crime syndicates in the country. 

Her mind hadn’t yet caught up to the reality and she wasn’t ready for the total panic that was about to consume her.

“You know I won’t let that happen.” He said firmly, tugging her close enough for him to wrap his arms around her and pull her to his chest. “Above anything else, I want to make sure you and Lucy stay safe. I promise.”

“I still worry. I can’t help it.” She mumbled, leaning against his collar. 

“Well…stop.” He said lamely. 

“Make me.” She pouted. 

“Okay, but you’ll moan a little.” He crooned in her ear. 

She gasped, scandalized, “Mark Tuan!”

He chuckled and pulled her close and pressed a kiss to her temple. A rare gesture. One that she was sure he wouldn’t do again for a long time. But she basked in the one time occurrence. He knew she needed physical reassurance and support. 

The longing that hit her at that moment was unexpected. She wrapped her arms around his waist and was practically in his lap but she didn’t care. She wanted a life like this, where she could curl up against him on a couch and just enjoy each other’s company and warmth without something weighing heavily on their minds. 

But life wasn’t that easy. 

“I’ll have to leave in a few hours, we can wake Lucy up and have dinner together before I go but will you be okay here?” He asked against her hair. 

She hummed, melting against him as she took a deep breath of him, nuzzling into his neck, “Maybe Lucy and I should just head back.” 

He nodded before rocking her side to side, “Or you could stay.”

She gulped and fell silent before Mark picked up on her mood, “You don’t have to, my feelings won’t be hurt if you say no. But I could stop by your place and pick up some of yours and Lucy’s things and maybe you could spend a few days here.”

Pulling away, she stared up at him, her heart turning soft at the earnest heat in his eyes. “Are you sure?”

“It’s probably better we stay together when shit hits the fan in a few days. It’ll also make it easier for Jaebum to find us, although we should get ready to move to one of his safehouses to avoid anyone finding us.”

“Right.” She said with a nod. 

He frowned, scanning her face before his hands fell off her waist and cupped her cheeks, “And I want you both here. I want you to stay. Might keep me sane.”

“Really?”

He gave her a dry smile, things were going to get crazy, having her and Lucy living with him would maintain a sense of normalcy that he was starved for. Some sort of balance in all the chaos that would keep the both of them grounded, “Of course I do. I’ll always prefer the two of you around.”

“Will you make me sleep next to Lucy?” She whispered sweetly.

He grinned, “No, she can keep my room. We can share the guest bed.”

“That sounds nice.”

“It does.”

“Waking up next to you sounds nice.” She breathed out. 

A strangled sound escaped his throat as he gazed at her, his eyes turning glassy and the furrow in his brow growing. That was the exact same face he made every time he wanted to kiss her but couldn’t. And the truth was, she _really_ wanted him to. 

“Yeah, shit, it really does.”

She wanted to take out all her anxiety and stress on his lips but with everything that’s happening and everything that’s going to happen, they didn’t need the added layer of a confusing new relationship on top. 

Mark must’ve come to the same conclusion because he just kissed her on the forehead and shifted his body so that her back could rest against his chest. He laced their fingers together and just sat in a lethargic silence, not even bothering to turn on the tv for background noise. 

Heiran closed her eyes, just focusing on the steady rise and fall of his chest. He squeezed her hand, sliding his fingers up and down hers. 

“Can I take this off?” He murmured. 

She opened her eyes and blinked hazily at her hand where he circled his fingers around her wedding band. She swallowed deeply and nodded, “Yes.”

Her heart skipped a beat when Mark pulled the ring off her finger and whipped it across the room where it clattered somewhere on the floor.

“Don’t worry.” Mark said under his breath, “I’ll get you a nicer one.”

\-----

“Everyone’s gone?” He asked Jinyoung. 

Mark was camped out in his car with Jinyoung on the phone. He was in the safe confines of his home, monitoring everything from his laptop. If he could be anywhere else, he’d be back at his apartment, with a full stomach from dinner that Lucy helped make and be in bed with Heiran. 

God, he could be curled up under warm sheets next to her but nope, he was here instead. 

“Yeah, last person just left. We should give them a couple of minutes before you go in case they decide to come back.” Jinyoung reported.

Mark nodded even though Jinyoung couldn’t see him “Alright. How was the rest of the day?”

“Honestly, I don’t know. Probably normal, but it felt weird to me.” He said softly.

Mark’s brows knit together, “What do you mean?”

“I don’t know, I guess after learning what he’s doing to you, how he’s lying and manipulating you, everything just felt wrong. You do everything for GOT7. And he’s more concerned about territory and money like I shouldn’t be surprised but I always thought you were his favourite. You know, like he’d make an exception to keep you around.” His words tumbled out like vomit.

Mark sighed out a deep breath, “Yeah, I know. But don’t feel bad, I won’t hold it against you if you stay.”

“I don’t know. I never planned on leaving but I don’t know if I can keep working for them. Plus, if he’s willing to screw you over, then there’s no telling what he’s willing to do to a lower level member like me.” He sounded beaten down, a feeling that Mark had gotten accustomed to over the last two weeks. 

But then Heiran showed up and injected determination into his bones and soul.

“You know what sucks?” Mark mumbled.

“What?”

Mark stared out the window, “That he hid it from me. He knew how I’d react so he kept it a secret from me and anyone else who would tell me. He didn’t want me to leave, it would’ve been better if he just told me the truth and let me walk out.”

“It’s greed.” Jinyoung said, “He wants his cake and to eat it too.”

“Yeah…oh, did Yeonhee ever show up?” Asked off-handedly.

Jinyoung huffed, almost in frustration, “No, man, I don’t know what the fuck is going on. I saw her after lunch and we were talking and she said she would be in her office but when I went to find her, she was gone and we got no explanation.”

“Since when do you and Yeonhee talk?” Mark asked in surprise. 

“Ever since you stopped sleeping with her.” Jinyoung deadpanned. 

“Huh, touché. Well, she’s probably just blowing off steam once she found out Jackson was taking her job.” He reasoned. 

Jinyoung grunted, “Yeah, you’re probably right. My gut just feels off.”

“Keep trying to get in touch with her then. I’m sure she’ll answer eventually.” Mark said.

Jinyoung hummed, “Maybe. How’s Heiran been handling everything.”

“Unfortunately, I think she’s getting used to it.” His tone was dry.

Jinyoung laughed incredulously, “I still can’t believe you’re working with Jaebum.”

“Trust me, it’s been a bizarre 12 hours.”

“I know you’re struggling, Mark.” Jinyoung said softly, “I’m sorry this happened. I wish it never did. You don’t deserve this.”

“Thanks, Jinyoung.” Mark meant it. Emotions weren’t something that came easily to the both of them but he appreciated that Jinyoung never gave up on trying to break past those walls. 

“You can talk to me if you’re ever going through something. You don’t need to be alone.”

Mark felt his lips twitch, “You’re right and don’t worry. I don’t feel so alone anymore.”

“That’s good.” Jinyoung said relieved, “I love you, man.”

Mark dropped his head and smiled at his toes, “I love you too, kid.”

“Okay, I think it’s safe to go. I’ve turned off all the cameras and replaced it with a pre-recorded feed from another night. When you reach his floor, I’m going to unlock his computer and disable anything that will notify him that someone was making copies and snooping.” Jinyoung informed.

“Got it.” He got out of his car and rounded to the entrance.

“Then I’ll be keeping a lookout for anyone entering the building and I’ll text you to warn you. Try to make it quick.”

“Alright, I’m about to head in.” Mar, said while hanging onto the door.

Jinyoung cleared his throat, “Mark, one last thing.”

“Yeah?” 

“If I do decide to leave GOT7, do you think you, Heiran and Jaebum have a spot for me?”

Mark smiled.

“Always.”

\-----

It had gone exactly as planned, he moved quickly through the building, sneaking into his Boss’s office and copying the Pumpkin file onto a flash drive. After leaving everything the way he found it, he stepped back out and felt the knot loosen in his chest.

He closed his Boss’s door and let out a long breath before hurrying to the elevators. He was halfway there when the digital panel above the elevator glowed. His eyes widened as he watched the numbers go up. 

Someone was on the elevator coming up to this floor. 

Scrambling for his phone, he cursed when he realized he forgot to take it off of silent mode. A dozen panicked warning texts from Jinyoung flooded his screen telling him to abort the mission. 

Fuck. 

A ding echoed through the floor and Mark ducked into Jinyoung’s office, taking his hat off and turning on the light. 

He pulled open Jinyoung’s drawers and dug through them until he found a charger just as the door swung open. Mark gripped the cable in his hand and smiled tensely at his Boss.

“Mark? What are you doing here so late? Where have you been?”

“Jinyoung asked me to drop by and pick up his charger.” He said smoothly, holding up the wire.

He raised his eyebrow suspectingly, “At 1AM?”

“His old one broke and he was running out of battery, didn’t want to be stranded in case of emergency.” Mark lied like he was speaking the truth.

His Boss nodded, believing him, “Oh, and where have you been? It’s been two weeks.”

“I’ve been with Heiran. It’s what I’ve always been doing. Why?” It was almost becoming too easy.

He narrowed his eyes. “Then why didn’t you come in today? I called everyone for a meeting.”

“I completely missed the text but Jinyoung filled me in.”

He tilted his head, “Really?

Mark nodded nonchalantly, “Yup when I realized I couldn’t make it in time, I had him catch me up.”

“In that case, good. I was worried something had happened.” He said, pleased.

“Nope, everything’s normal. Although I was pretty shocked to hear about Jackson.” Mark said. Suddenly the air felt thinner and his head started to swim.

His Boss clucked his tongue. “Ah, it was a bold move and as much as I hated to do it knowing that Heiran was just let go, I had to make sure that we didn’t lose our connection to her company.”

“Makes sense to me. It was smart to get one of our guys on the inside. It makes the transactions smoother. No middleman.” It was hard to look at him, to pretend that everything was normal and that he wasn’t feeling betrayed and particularly sick.

His Boss smiled and Mark wondered if his teeth were looking sharper than usual, like a snake’s fangs, “Exactly. I couldn’t miss the opportunity. Was she upset?”

“No, more confused and surprised but she didn’t pay much attention to it.” He brushed it off.

“Good. Actually, I’m glad I caught you, I have an assignment for you. I know you’re preoccupied with Heiran but it’s just a quick matter I need you to handle.” He said with a snap of his fingers.

Mark’s jaw tensed and he could feel his anger rising but he forced himself to keep calm, “No problem. If you send me the information I’ll take care of it first thing tomorrow.”

“Unfortunately that won’t do.” He said with a shake of his head.

“Sorry?” Mark asked with a frown.

“This matter is slightly more urgent. I need you to handle it now.”

Mark looked around, bewildered, “Now? I don’t know if that’s possible, I need time to plan and track the mark.”

“No need. Follow me.”

\-----

Mark cursed himself for being caught, it was such a rookie mistake to keep his phone on silent, not even vibrate. He got into his Boss’s car and sat stiffly through the short drive to the middle of an empty field. 

Well, almost empty. 

He could see someone standing in the distance next to a tall tree and when he got closer he spotted Jackson. When he saw Mark nearing he grinned in a way that used to be charming but now felt predatory.

“Hey, buddy! Haven’t seen you in ages.” 

Mark nodded at him but kept his lips sealed. Their Boss cleared his throat and gestured at Jackson who stepped around the tree trunk and pulled out a man with a black bag over his head. He could hear his muffled cries as Jackson shoved him down onto his knees. 

“I was going to take care of him but with my new promotion, it was risky.” Jackson explained, “We were thinking about stashing him in one of the empty offices and getting you to deal with it tomorrow but this is perfect.

“That’s enough talking.” Their Boss stated. He lifting his chin at Jackson who pulled the black bag off of the man’s head to reveal his face. 

Mark’s felt his heart drop when he met eyes with the VP of Legal from Heiran's old company. 

No. 

No.

He couldn’t kill him, not when they still needed answers from him. He was their only chance. 

His Boss handed him a gun and nodded at him, “Take care of it.”

“What’d he do?” Mark muttered. 

Jackson snorted, “Since when do you care?”

“He’s a loose end. If he stays alive, it increases the chances of us ending up dead.”

Mark hesitated, his mind running through the possibilities of him keeping this man alive without raising any suspicions. He came up empty. 

“Do I need to worry about anyone noticing him missing?” Mark asked. 

His Boss shook his head, “We took care of it. If anyone asks, our man here has decided to move to Tahiti.” 

This was his job, he had done it a hundred times before, if he suddenly backed down, it would raise eyebrows. He couldn't afford to suddenly act out of character. There was no getting out of this. 

He had gone so long without having a dead body on his hands. 

He didn’t want to break the streak. 

And he didn’t want to go home to Heiran who was waiting for him in bed to hold her with hands that just killed a man. 

But he had no choice. 

If he fucked this up, it could endanger their entire plan and Heiran and Lucy’s safety. 

And that always came first. 

“Mark.” His Boss pressed. 

He could feel both of their stares in his back, seconds away from calling him out. Mark raised the gun and pressed it to his forehead. In that moment he came to decision.

This would be the last time he killed. 

The last time he took the life of someone who wasn’t an immediate threat. 

The last time he acted as a hitman, assassin, hired gun, whatever you want to call it.

The next time he shot someone, it would be because it was life or death. 

And for the first time since he picked up a gun, Mark closed his eyes before pulling the trigger. 

Jackson and his Boss were pleased and Mark left as soon as possible, letting them deal with disposing the body. That wasn’t part of his job description anyway. He stumbled to his Boss’s car and nearly threw up as he got inside. 

He wasn’t sure how but he managed to drive it back to the headquarters before leaving it in the parking lot and looking for his own vehicle. 

It wasn’t until he got behind the wheel, he notices a glossy black car with heavily tinted windows parked near his car. The lights were still on and Mark frowned when he realized that through his sickened dazed, he had noticed that car following behind him when he was driving his Boss’s car. 

It looked a little familiar but not enough to recognize. 

Mark pulled his gun out before pointing it at the lurking car. In seconds the car pulled away and drove off, indicating that whoever was inside had been watching him. Trembling, he quickly raced back to his apartment. He chose to run up the flights of stairs instead of being crammed in an elevator under fluorescent lights.

He stepped into his apartment and shivered at the silence. Even though there were extra pairs of shoes by the door, he hated how dark and empty it looked. He checked on Lucy who was blissfully asleep and curled up still wearing his leather jacket. 

Then he stepped into the guest room, walking lightly not to wake Heiran up. He slipped into the bathroom and immediately sat on the lid of the toilet and held his head in despair. 

Jackson had been right that day that he had taken Lucy. He couldn’t be with a woman like Heiran and bask in the normalcy of her life only to sneak in at 2AM with the smell of gun powder on his clothes. 

He snapped his head up when a soft knock came on the bathroom door. Before he could straggle out an excuse, Heiran’s head peeked in. She was squinting at the bright light and her hair was a tangled mess. 

And it made his heartbreak and heal at the same time. 

“Hey, I thought I heard you.” Her voice was groggy and snug made up of promises of understanding and compassion that he didn’t feel he deserved.

“Hi.”

“How…did it go?” He wasn’t sure what happened but her eyes went from sleepy to alert in a second and her voice went from curious to dread even faster. 

He couldn’t answer her before she stepped into the bathroom and began searching through the cabinets. She pulled out a small towel and ran it under hot water before nudging his knees apart so she could stand between them. 

She began pressing the warm towel against his cheek, gripping his chin with her fingers to hold him in place. But he wasn’t moving, he just stared at her pleadingly as she continued to wipe his face. She touched him so delicately like he could break. Like _he_ was the one that needed protecting. 

The truth was that people needed protection from _him_.

When she took a step back, his eyes fell to the damp cloth in her hand and felt sick when he saw it stained red. He had someone else’s blood on his face. 

And she saw. 

“Please don’t hate me.” He whispered brokenly. 

Her lip quivered as she dropped to her knees in front of him. She tossed the towel aside and blinked back tears, “Whose is it?”

“The VP of Legal.”

“Oh my god.” She whispered. “How? You were just going to make copies of files.”

“Your dad showed up. He didn’t catch me but he brought me to him and asked me to take care of it.” He said, just as quietly, “I didn’t want to do it but I couldn’t say no without making him suspicious.”

“Oh, baby.”

At the soft name, he burst into tears and Heiran pulled him into her shoulder, holding him while he sobbed against her. It was every feeling he had bottled up. Anger for the violence he was forced to adopt ever since his parents gave up, the shame that this was his job, the fear that Heiran would take Lucy and leave his life forever because of what he did, the pain of feeling so weak he couldn’t stand up for himself. 

And the exhaustion of a career that had stolen every last part of his soul. 

“Please don’t leave me.” He whispered through tears. 

She blinked back her own tears and hushed him, “I won’t. I promise.”

It was an hour of him breaking down and once he started chanting that he would never kill anyone ever again, that tonight was the last time, that he was so sorry that he disappointed her, Heiran started crying too. They were broken and tired when their throats were raw and she managed to guide him under the sheet. 

Her hands shook as she pulled off his sweater and shuffled his jeans off before crawling in beside him. “We’re going to sleep. We’re going to sleep and sleep well. We’re going to wake up next to each other and it’ll be wonderful and tomorrow we’ll figure everything out.”

Mark felt his head throb as his nose pressed against her neck, “I’m sorry.”

He was sorry she was living this nightmare. 

He was sorry she had seen things that she didn’t deserve to see.

He was sorry she had fallen for him and everything wrong with him. 

He was sorry he couldn’t be what she deserved. 

But she just nudged him so that he rolled onto his side, away from her and wrapped her arms around his middle, moulding her chest to his back, and held him. 

“Tomorrow.” She whispered, “We’ll try again tomorrow.” 


	30. Thirtieth

It wasn't light blinding him, his cellphone alarm blaring or the natural opening of his eyes that woke him from his sleep that morning.

It was warm weight gently settling over his hips and hands pressing down on either side of his head.

He opened his eyes and looked up at Heiran who tucked some of her hair behind her ear and smiled like a fucking angel.

That’s what she was, heaven, paradise, was utopia too much of a cliche? 

“Morning, baby.” She whispered. 

Had he died?

Was this the promise land? 

Because he swore this only showed up in his dreams. This was all he ever wanted in his life and he wanted it so badly. 

Wanted every morning to start and end like this. 

No wonder he had felt empty and miserable for so much of his adult life. And no wonder she always talked about being able to be happier. Had he known that he could feel like this, he wouldn’t have fought it so hard. 

Every day was them pushing their limit a little more. 

His hands gripped her thighs and he took a sharp breath when he was met with her bare skin, still a little cold from the morning air. He ran his palms up and down her thighs as if to warm her up. She leaned down, brushed their noses back and forth a few times as his hands explored higher up her legs until his knuckles grazed the hem of the sweater of his she wore.

Digging his hands into her flesh, he sat up and slowly rolled them over so that she landed on her back, her hair messy around her head. God, it was like a thick layer of cotton surrounded his brain as he stared down at her. He copied her gesture and nudged her nose with his but hesitated when it came to kissing her. It'd be so easy and his soul craved it, to just sink into her mouth and fall into her head first, eyes closed. But that was the line they never crossed. She didn’t push him and just let him stare down at her as she reached out to tangle her fingers into his hair. 

“How are you feeling?” She asked softly. 

He hummed roughly in the back of his throat and ran his nose up and down the column of her throat. It was like he was trying to dull his senses by filling them with _her_. His lips brushed her skin when he mumbled, “Okay.”

She shivered and let out a sigh, “We have to tell Jaebum.”

“I know.” He didn’t want to think about the earful he was going to get when he found out that their only lead was dead and probably sinking to the bottom of a lake somewhere. 

“It’s not your fault. Don’t blame yourself for every bad thing you had to do to survive.” She said into the top of his head. 

He pulled her legs higher up his waist as her fingers slid down his bare back, her nails digging into his muscle. He melted into her, his shoulder pressing into hers, tucking his face into the base of her throat when a clumsy knock on his bedroom had him letting go of her thighs and pressing them to the bed to hold himself off of her. 

He looked over his shoulder at the closed door as Heiran’s hands slid to hold his arms, “Yeah?”

“Mom?” Lucy’s sleep ridden voice called out. 

Mark silently rolled off of Heiran and went to search for some clothes. She sat up and caught the pair of sweatpants he tossed her way, “Just a second, sunshine.”

Once she and Mark were modestly covered, she opened the door and crouch down to see Lucy cutely rubbing her eyes, “Hi, honey.”

“Good morning.” She said politely, making Heiran laugh as she smoothed her baby hairs out. “When are we going home?”

“Actually, what do you think about staying with Mark for a while?” Heiran asked. 

Mark walked behind Heiran and smiled at Lucy, “You’ll get to spend time with Nemo.”

Her eyes sparkled, “Really?”

Heiran nodded, “Mark will pick up some of your things. I’ll even let you stay home from school for a few days. Won’t that be fun?”

Lucy, too excited with all the new information didn’t bother asking questions and just took the spare toothbrush Mark handed her and rushed off to the bathroom. Mark pressed a palm to Heiran’s back, “Go wash up, I’ll run out and pick your things up and wash up when I get back. I completely spaced last nig—“

“It’s fine.” She said with a smile, “Cut yourself some slack, Mark.”

\-----

When he came back and stepped out of the bathroom, he found Lucy sitting on the couch in front of cartoons and Heiran by the stove, making the best of his spare fridge.

“Here, let me help.” He said, meeting her over the pan of eggs she was frying. 

She moved to give him room but he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her closer. He rested his forehead against hers, “Thank you, for last night.”

Heiran’s eyes fluttered shut and she hummed, “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’m getting there.” He whispered, “I promise.” 

“Okay.” She whispered back, opening her eyes. 

He kissed her on the forehead and she sighed delightfully before moving away from him to cut up some fruits. Mark fiddled with the dials on the stove when he felt someone watching him. He turned and frozen when Lucy’s blank eyes bore into him. He gulped, suddenly intimidated by her unshaken gaze. He had assumed she wasn’t paying attention, now he wondered how much she had seen. 

“Lucy, breakfast!” Heiran called, oblivious to the tension.

Her face lit up as she hopped off the couch and raced to the table. 

Breakfast was quiet, Mark was antsy in his seat across from Lucy, worried that she was upset at the minor display of affection that she was probably not used to seeing. The knock on the door provided an escape as Mark left the table. 

Jaebum raised his brow when Mark opened the door, “Wow, you look bad.”

“Shut up.” Mark muttered, glaring at the back of his head when he chuckled. 

His laughter died when he saw Heiran and Lucy happily washing dishes together. Lucy glanced at him, barely giving him a smile before turning back to the sink. “I’m not ever going to get used to this.”

“Did I forget to tell you to shut up?” Mark glared, reaching for a mug of coffee Heiran had left him on the table. 

Jaebum rolled his eyes as Heiran helped Lucy off the chair that she was standing on to reach the sink, “Can we go somewhere to talk about…things where she can’t hear?”

“She can watch tv. I have a study.” He said. 

With Lucy perched on the couch, the three of them stood around Mark’s office. It wasn’t simple and relatively empty except for a desk, a bookshelf and weapons hanging off the wall, “You probably need to find something to do with Lucy because she’s going to get bored watching daytime television.”

“Maybe she should go back to school.” Heiran considered. 

Mark shrugged, “It might keep her busy but eventually it won’t be safe.”

She nodded, considering her options when Jaebum cleared his throat, “Anyways, I was thinking of what we could do about that VP guy that you guys suspected. It might be risky but I think we’re going to have to just grab him. I was thinking we pretend to be his Uber driver.”

Heiran and Mark shared a look and Jaebum tensed, “Oh god, what is it now?”

“Something came up with the VP of Legal.” Heiran said slowly. 

Mark sighed, “I killed him.”

“Wha-Why!” Jaebum boomed exasperatedly. “Are you fucking kidding me? There’s no way you’re _that_ trigger happy."

Heiran shushed him before Mark pinched the bridge of his nose, “I ran into my Boss when I was copying information. I managed to lie my way out of it but he cornered me into taking care of an assignment. It wasn’t until I was standing over him in the middle of an empty field that I realized who it was. I couldn’t back out with Jackson and my Boss standing and watching.”

“Fucking hell.” Jaebum muttered, “Of all the fucking people in the world—wait, Jackson was there?”

Mark leaned against the door, “Yeah, I guess our theory was right, he must’ve been their contact and they got rid of him in case he came clean.”

“What will people think when he just goes missing?” She asked worriedly. 

Mark shoved both hands into his hair, “They’ve set it up to make it look like he just took a vacation or just ran off with some company money or something. They seemed confident that it wouldn’t look suspicious considering a new guy just started.”

“Shit. So, I mean, where does that leave us? They got rid of their weakest link before we could get to him.” Jaebum said in resignation. 

Heiran dug her heel into the ground, “We skipped a step. Does that mean we just go straight to Jackson?”

“If we start questioning him, he’ll know we’ve flipped.” Make said.

Jaebum rubbed his chin, “So, instead of an interrogation, what if we make it seem like a casual conversation? I mean, you two used to be friends, right? Why not pretend to get lunch or sometimes and talk about his fancy corporate promotion and what went down last night? Record the entire thing and that’s it. He won’t suspect anything, I’m sure sharing information is normal between members.”

Mark closed his eyes and mulled it over before relenting, “That could work, but Jackson is slippery. The second he senses something’s wrong, it’s over.”

“We’ll be there with you, then. We’ll pick a busy restaurant and blend in with the crowd. I doubt he’d blow his cover if there are people around.” She suggested. 

Mark shot her a dirty look, “You’re not going in there. Things could go bad, fast.”

“I’ll be there with her. The minute it gets sour, I’ll get her out of there.” Jaebum assured.

“That’s not a bad plan.” She said softly. 

He pressed his fingers to his temples, running through his options in his head, “Fine. Okay. Only if you promise to take her out the minute it goes bad.”

“Take Lucy to Yugyeom or drop her off at school or something to keep her safe. And you go make a lunch date with the new VP of Finance. This is happening. We're done playing defensive.”

\-----

It was a popular restaurant in the heart of the city. 

As the reviews said, it was packed during the lunch rush. Fortunately for them, they made reservations and bypassed the line that had wrapped around the building. Heiran and Jaebum were tucked into a corner where Jaebum had a view of Mark’s table. 

“He’s here.” Jaebum informed both Heiran and Mark who could hear him through his earphones. 

Heiran pretended to busy herself with the menu as Jaebum waved away the waiter, listing the need for more time to decide on what to order. She didn’t notice her leg bouncing until Jaebum’s foot tapped her calf, “Relax. He’s handled worse.”

She nodded but it didn’t stop her from tensing when she spotted Mark enter the restaurant. She watched him speak to the hostess and follow her to his table. He didn’t acknowledge them as he passed and she was grateful, she wasn’t sure her stomach could take it 

It was one thing knowing that Mark went out on dangerous assignments, it was another thing to be in a room with him. “The salmon looks good.”

Heiran gave Jaebum a dubious look but he didn’t look up from his menu, “Right? We’re at a restaurant, so discussing the menu is the normal thing to do.”

“R-Right.” She said, looking back at the list of dishes, the words blurring together. 

Jaebum quickly ordered some dishes for them to keep the waiter busy before they fell silent, straining to hear the conversation. 

“Awwww, the golden boy wanted to get lunch with me. I was blushing like a bride.” Jackson cooed with a laugh. 

Mark rolled his eyes but smiled nonetheless, exchanging a half hug with the man before sitting across from him, “I figure we’re won’t really be seeing much of each other soon considering you’re probably getting cozy in a corner office. Nice suit, by the way.”

Jackson shook his head, “I can’t believe it, man, it’s so bizarre, going from selling guns to selling stock.”

“I don’t think you’ll be selling stock.” Mark quipped.

Jackson laughed, “I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing. Maybe you should give me some tips since you followed the daughter around for months. You probably know what she does.”

“Meh, once she starts talking numbers I stop paying attention.” Mark said casually.

“But at least you have something nice to look at.” Jackson said with a smirk.

Mark smiled tightly, “Yeah. Speaking of which, how did you even manage to get an in with the company? I mean, an executive job? I thought they were super tight-knit.”

“That’s why it’s important to have friends in high places, Marky.” Jackson wagged his finger in Mark’s face with a cheeky smile.

He wondered if it would attract too much attention if he just punched him across the face right now, “Right, was that a friend that I took care of last night?”

Jackson raised a brow and Mark snorted, “You said it first, man. I followed Heiran around for months, I recognize the faces of some of the suits.”

“Don’t worry your pretty little head about him, Mark. Just needed to clear the way to make sure our plan is going smoothly.” Jackson lifted his glass to his lips, taking a sip.

Mark tried to look disinterested, “Yeah, I missed the meeting but Jinyoung filled me in. Said it was something about expanding the business, right?”

“Hmm, yeah, we got our hands on some new territory and without your girl funnelling our money, we needed to think quick. They sent me in to streamline it or some shit. We don’t need to lie and trick someone to clean our money, I can just do it myself.” He explained, waving his hand dismissively. 

Mark’s fingers itched hearing Jackson talk with so much authority. It was the same way he used to talk himself whenever anyone wanted a direct line to his Boss. He wondered if in his time with Heiran, he was being replaced with his Boss. “Where the hell did we get new territory? I wasn’t gone for that long, was I?”

“Things have been moving quickly, Mark. I’m barely keeping up. Boss secured it from someone and the money coming in is hot.”

“God, it feels so weird being out of the loop. I didn’t even realize we were growing. What are we doing with the new territory? Arms?” He leaned back and lifted a menu as if they were just exchanging pleasantries. 

Jackson scrunched his face up in distaste, “Ugh, I so don’t want to talk about work now. Ever since they stuck me in a suit I’m basically working around the clock.”

Mark’s jaw tensed as he forced out a smile, “It’s only been 2 days, Jackson.”

“That should tell you something but honestly, it’s only been 2 days since I was publicly announced, I’ve been ‘working’ for weeks now and it sucks.” He groaned.

Mark tilted his head, “What if someone from our world exposes you?”

“They wouldn’t dare.” Jackson said with a smirk, “And if they do, we’ll sick you on them.”

God, he hated being treated like a dog, “True.”

“Tell me about you. What’s it like shacking up with the Boss’s daughter?” He asked, wiggling his. brows.

Mark rolled his eyes, “I’m not living with her, idiot. I’m in that shitty broken down apartment.”

“But still, I bet you hit it once. I mean, it’s been like 6 fucking months dude.” He said with a wink.

“Don’t call me dude.” Mark deadpanned, “And no, I didn’t hit it.”

“Right, sure.” Jackson said with a smirk, “I heard she married DS. I’m guessing it was a sham wedding. But she must be living the life, getting the DS _and_ GOT7 dick.”

Mark was sure nail prints would be found on the underside of his chair with how he was digging in, “Now I sorta want to go back to talking about work.”

\-----

Heiran twisted her face up making Jaebum snort. 

Judging by how this conversation was going, it was starting to sound like Jackson had no idea about the bigger picture. He was kept just as in the dark as everyone else. He had no idea what GOT7 was doing or why they were suddenly expanding with an influx of money. 

This entire plan was a failure. 

Sighing, she tuned out of the conversation as Mark struggled to refocus Jackson’s attention. And quite frankly she didn’t want to hear Jackson try to pry into her sex life. Even if the plan was a bust, at least she’d get to have good food. She had put this restaurant on her list of places she wanted to visit but she never got the chance. 

She stared at the empty space where her plate was meant to be before frowning. It had to have been at least half an hour since she and Jaebum had ordered and they hadn’t received their food yet. Scanning the restaurant, her heart fell when she noticed something very, _very_ wrong.

The restaurant was empty. 

She had been so preoccupied with eavesdropping that she hadn’t noticed the crowd had thinned out to the point where the only people remaining were her, Jaebum, Jackson and Mark. 

There wasn’t even a single waiter in sight. 

Panicking, she reached out and touched Jaebum’s hand, pulling his attention to her. She slowly mouthed the word _empty_ to him before nodding her head behind him. He glanced over his shoulder and his face immediately tensed. 

This was no coincidence. There was a line up of people out the door when they first entered, there should’ve been a steady flow of customers coming in and out. When she and Jaebum met eyes again, it dawned on them. 

This was a trap. 

Somehow Jackson knew that he was being set-up and cleared the crowd except for them. Which meant he must’ve known they had been sitting there the entire time. 

Jaebum frantically looked over her shoulder, most likely to signal Mark. The message must’ve been passed because he slowly pushed his chair back. He leaned forward and breathed his words out so softly they were barely a whisper, “We’re leaving.”

“But Mark.” She said back.

“He can handle himself.” Jaebum replied before standing. He gripped her hand tight, almost painfully and it fully sank in that he was worried. And if Jaebum was worried, that meant this was bad.

She held her breath the entire time they moved across the restaurant, waiting for someone to stop them and force them back to their seats. The minute they managed to step outside, she felt a sigh of relief escape her. But it didn’t last long. 

“We can’t just leave him in there.” She asked. “Jackson is setting him up.” 

Jaebum ran his hand through his hair as he handed the valet his ticket, “He knows it’s off. He’s ready for Jackson to flip on him. That’s all we can do, make sure he’s aware. The rest we need to leave up to him. Mark is good at his job, Seo. He’s smart and quick on his feet. More importantly, he knows how Jackson thinks and how to play him. The best we can do is get as far away as possible so Mark has one less thing to worry about.”

She nodded but it was hard to resist going back in and dragging Mark out herself. A few minutes passed and Jaebum was getting impatient, “Where the fuck is the valet?”

“Do you think something happened?” She asked wearily. 

Jaebum reached for his gun and kept it to his side, “Stay here. Don’t move, I’m going to check on him.”

That just spiked her anxiety up another notch but she just nodded and pressed herself against the side of the building.

\-----

“The sex was good.” It pained Mark to force the words out but ever since he met Jaebum’s eyes and noted the emptiness of the restaurant, he did everything in his power to keep Jackson calm and to stay away from any topic that he might interpret as prying.

He wasn’t sure _what_ Jackson knew but clearly, he knew enough to not trust meeting up with him. 

At least Jaebum had the sense to get Heiran out of there in case this got ugly. 

Jackson’s face lit up, “I knew it! I knew you were sleeping with her.”

“It was only once, though.” Mark said. If he could convince Jackson that he wasn’t digging for information, there was a chance that he’d just let them have lunch and part ways harmlessly. And if it meant playing along with his dumb questions, then he'd do it.

Jackson wiggled his brows, “Bet she was into all sorts of stuff. Single mothers are always the freakiest, they haven’t gotten laid in so long that they’re down for anything.”

Jesus, this was why he was never close to Jackson. 

He didn’t even know how to respond. His voice came out deadpanned without him even trying, “It was hot.”

“Better than Yeonhee, I bet.” 

God, he couldn’t stand him, “I can’t really compare the two.”

“Wow, you’re incredible.” Jackson said with a shake of his head. 

Mark shrugged, “You spend long enough time with someone, shit happens.”

“No. I mean, you’re _so_ desperate to make me think you aren’t recording this conversation that you’re willing to talk about Yeonhee _and_ fucking the Boss’s daughter.” 

Mark froze before staring at Jackson, his gaze even, “What are you talking about?”

“Don’t play dumb. Man, I didn’t want to play this card just yet but come on, dude. Lunch? Really?” Jackson said with a snort.

Mark narrowed his eyes, “Don’t call me dude.”

“You really turned on us, fucking hell.” Jackson shook his head. "I can't believe it. You of all people. Thought you were the most loyal one of us."

Mark ground his teeth, “That’s not true.”

“Don’t deny it, you snake. The Boss knows you’ve been poking around, looking into shit you shouldn’t have been looking into. Just own up to it. You defected.” Jackson’s cheery disposition morphed into a stern glare.

“How does he know?” 

Jackson laughed but his eyes were dead, “You’re really underestimating us like that? Get out of here. The Boss had DS’s place bugged, Mark. DS knew too much ever since he made that deal but we couldn’t kill him without starting the war of the century so Boss had to make sure he didn’t talk. I have to say, I’m impressed he lasted as long as he did and I’m even more impressed you shot him. I thought you guys were like bffs or some shit.”

Mark felt his heart sink, he hadn’t realized how much he was caught off guard, “This entire time…”

“He knew that you knew.” Jackson finished for him.

“I have dirt on him. You try anything, it gets out.” Mark threatened.

Jackson looked completely at ease, “Do you? Did you look at the files you copied onto that flash drive or did you just assume that it was the same file you had seen before?”

“What?” Mark breathed out, his blood running cold.

Jackson leaned back in his chair, lacing his fingers behind his head, “Open it up when you get home, _dude_. You won’t find what you think you did.”

“He bugged my apartment too, didn’t he?” That’s how this entire plan blew up in his face. That’s how his Boss had enough time to replace the Pumpkin file with dummy documents.

“Yup, I mean you really dropped the ball there. You haven’t been living there for months and you just come back without bothering to sweep the place? She really made you soft.” He tsked.

“But how—Jinyoung.” It couldn’t be true, not his best friend.

He clucked his tongue, “Nah, I wish. In fact, I tried to get him to program some bugs for me but he refused without knowing what they were for. It’s amazing how you manage to make people so loyal to you but you can’t even be loyal to the gang that _saved_ you.”

“You think I could be loyal to a gang that traffics?” Mark spat out venomously. 

Jackson smiled and stood, “Nice try. You’re not getting anything out of me.”

“So, what do you want? He wants me dead because I’m flipping?” Mark stood up as well, measuring Jackson up.

“I can’t let you leave with that recording, Mark.” Jackson said threateningly. 

He clenched his fists, “Why? There’s nothing on it.”

“I’m a public figure now, even the smallest allegation is enough. I can’t risk it.” Jackson cooed playfully.

“Or what?” Mark dared.

Jackson grinned and walked past Mark and to the front doors, “I was hoping you’d ask.”

On cue, Heiran was shoved through the doors with a gun trained to the back of her head. Mark’s eyes widened and his blood ran cold. Of course, Jackson wouldn’t have come alone if he knew Mark was trying to trap him. Jackson couldn’t take on Mark alone. 

She was shaking, her desperate eyes holding onto his for dear life. He felt a furious rage build inside him, “You’ve just done a very stupid thing, Jackson.”

Jackson shook his head, disappointed, “I told you not to get mixed up with her. That it was only going to fuck you up. You never listen to me, it’s probably because your head is so far up your own ass. You think that just because the Boss trusted you that you were better than everyone else. Guess what, buddy, you’ve been replaced.”

Mark pulled his gun out and pointed it at Jackson, making the gunman behind Heiran tense, “You wouldn’t be dumb enough to kill your Boss’s daughter.”

“You think he cares if she’s alive? She's useless to GOT7 now that I have her job. In fact, it’s probably easier to get rid of her now.” Jackson cackled when Heiran’s face dropped. She probably thought that even if her father was using her, that he at least cared enough to want her alive.

Mark’s hand shook before he dropped his arm in resignation. “I’ll give you the recording.”

“That’s a good boy. Put it on the ground and kick it over.” Mark set the wire down and kicked it. Jackson raised his foot and crushed it under his heel.

“Now let her go.” Mark growled, forcing himself not to stare into Heiran's scared eyes or he'd lose the last of his resolve and go on a rampage.

Jackson ignored him, “You know what movie I love? Batman. You know, the one with Joker and Two-Face.”

“Let her go.” Mark repeated, feeling himself grow more and more impatient.

“I think I just loved the scene where Batman had to pick between saving Rachel and Harvey Dent. Knowing that whoever he saved would go insane with grief knowing that he let the other one die. It was riveting.” Jackson said with a flourish. 

There was something different in Jackson’s eyes that Mark had never seen before. It wasn’t the cold calculation of a hired gun. It wasn’t the apathy of someone who just doing a job. There was excitement and giddiness in his eyes. 

He was having fun. 

That chilled Mark to the bone. Jackson had always been the light-hearted goof-ball that rarely took anything seriously. Seeing the unhinged look that was now covering his face concerned him, “Jackson what are you doing? I gave you the recording, you got what you wanted, I have nothing on you or GOT7, let her go.”

“You see, when I had to choose between the girl I loved and doing my job, I picked my job. Now I go on dates to the cemetery to visit her. Some might say I went a little insane knowing I couldn't save the thing I gave up. Meanwhile, you get to be with the girl you love as part of your job. First Yeonhee and now her, but I guess you never loved Yeonhee, did you? Either way, it wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair that you got everything.” Jackson hissed manically.

“You know that’s not true.” If anything, Mark sacrificed _everything_ just to get the scraps.

“Doesn’t matter now. Because I decided to take some creative liberties with this assignment. This time, I’m not going to let you have it both ways.”

“What the fuc—“

“Mommy?”

Mark couldn’t move. He swore his heart stopped beating and the oxygen escaped his lungs in a painful punch. Maybe he just heard wrong, maybe his mind was just conjured up voices out of panic. 

But then he heard Heiran’s bloodcurdling scream and he knew before he turned to see her. Lucy was standing on the other side of the bar counter with a gun pointed to her head and tears streaming down her little face. Had they been keeping her in the kitchen this entire time? 

Wasn’t she supposed to be at school?

His mind spun and a high-pitched ringing blared in his ear and it took a moment before he realized that it was Heiran’s screams, begging them to let her sunshine go. To take her instead. To not touch a hair on her head or she’d kill them herself. 

But Mark was numb as his eyes swivelled from Heiran to Lucy.

“Time to pick a life, Mark. Which will it be?” Jackson sang. 

How was he supposed to pick? 

How was he supposed to live with his decision? 

“Why are you doing this? You don’t need to do this. I gave you everything you needed. You won’t get exposed. GOT7 is cleared. What is the point of this?” He didn’t clock the way his own voice trembled.

“Because I’m the favourite now and I want you suffer.” Jackson barked.

“Why?” He seethed, “This isn’t even a directive. You’re just doing this because of a vendetta you made up in your mind.”

“Because I’ve always hated you. And you were dumb enough to care about something.”

“Mark! Mark!” Heiran called hysterically. 

He turned to look at her, his eyes glassy and filled with desperation when he saw how wrecked she looked. Her face was blotchy and her eyes bright red, “Please. Remember rule number six.”

_If you’re ever faced with the choice between saving me or Lucy, you always choose her. No matter what._

His hands trembled as he gave her one last long look that he wished conveyed everything he had been too scared to put into words. 

I’m sorry. 

He cocked his gun and ran to Lucy, leaping over the counter and grabbing her before shooting the man who was holding her. Then, before he could think, he crouched down behind the counter and held her, covering her ears with his hands as bullets rang out above them. 

Mark’s own eyes were squeezed shut and he hadn’t noticed tears streaking down his face as he held her Lucy, trembling. 

He stayed in that position until he heard the door close. He waited a few more minutes before slowly standing. His heart started to race as he stared at the scene before him. 

The bodies of the gunmen and Jackson were crumpled on the ground surrounded by pools of their blood. 

They were dead. 

But Heiran was gone.

Before he could think, the sound of sirens approaching had him sprinting into action. He pressed Lucy’s face into his shoulder and lifted her up into his arms before running out the back doors.

Once they were in his car, he couldn’t pause to think, he just drove off as fast as possible. But at the sound of Lucy’s whimper, he pulled over and hugged her, letting her cry on him. 

“It’s okay, sunshine. I know. I know. I’m here. You’re okay. Nothing’s going to happen to you. Everything's...we'll be okay.”

\-----

He had called Jaebum half a dozen times to no answer. 

People needed to start answering their damn phones. Mark had no idea if Jaebum was dead in a ditch somewhere or double-crossing them by running to GOT7 or was a part of the entire scheme. 

Mark needed to find Heiran. He needed to make sure she was alive, if he could just confirm that none of the blood on the restaurant floor was hers, he could be a little more at ease. 

But Lucy came first, she always came first. 

They had to be quick. He practically picked her up and carried her through her house, tossing a bunch of her things into bags. There was no doubt that news of Jackson’s death would be hitting GOT7 and it wouldn’t take long before a manhunt would be put out against him. Every member would be racing for his head. 

And with his apartment bugged, he couldn’t go back there. He wasn’t sure how much of Heiran’s house was bugged either so he stayed silent as he grabbed as much as he could. He even went into Heiran’s room and tore her clothes off hangers and swiped perfume bottles and even a pair of her fancy heels before shoving them in with Lucy’s things.

He tried to find some important documents like passports but he couldn't break through her safe, instead, he got on his knees and pulled out the shoebox that Heiran had hidden under her dresser. He wasn't sure what was inside but she clearly kept important, sentimental things in there since she kept Jaebum's ring old in there. Maybe she'd want to see whatever was inside to bring her comfort when he found her.

Until he saw her dead body, he was treating Heiran as if she was alive. 

Because he wasn’t going to make it out the door otherwise.

He herded Lucy and the bags of clothes into his car and drove to one of Jaebum’s safehouses. There was no way anyone would’ve known about those. Mark wasn’t sure how he was functioning, it was like he vacuumed his emotions out of his body and just moved on autopilot. 

Lucy had fallen silent next to him and he knew she wasn’t okay but he just needed to get them to safety. He picked the furthest safehouse and after an hour and half of driving, he was carrying Lucy and her belonging into a small apartment barely big enough for two. 

He swept the room for bugs, not willing to make the same mistake twice before crouching down next to the little girl, properly speaking to her for the first time. 

“I’m so sorry, sunshine.” Was all he could manage, his voice raspy. 

Lucy was shaking as tears filled her eyes, “Where’s mom?”

“I don’t know, but I’ll find her. I promise.” He vowed, tucking her tightly against him. 

He pulled back to survey her, “Are you hurt? Did they hurt you?”

Lucy shook her head and let him pull her into his arms. “Can you tell me what happened?”

“He came to pick me up from school. I recognized him because he had picked me from the backyard before and he used the code word.” Lucy stuttered out, shaking.

“Yeah, I remember. I bet you were scared, weren’t you?” Mark’s voice cracked but he refused to cry. He couldn’t do it in front of Lucy, her mother was gone and as of right now, he was all she had to rely on. 

“They were yelling at me.” She hiccuped, “And they had guns.”

He cupped her little cheeks, “You did so well, you were so brave, you know that? I’m so proud of you. Your mom too.”

She pulled away from him and dropped to the ground before curling up into a ball to hug her knees, “I want my mom.”

“I know, sunshine.” He laid down next to her and just watched her. He wanted her mom too, “I won’t give up until I find her.”

“There were gunshots after you to came to me. That man said that whoever you didn’t pick would die. Is mom…is mom dead?” Her voice shook as it devolved into sobs.

“No.” He said firmly, “Your mom is alive and she’s fine and I’m going to find her for you, sweet girl. I swear on my life.”

“Why didn’t you save mom?” She asked quietly.

He gulped, she probably hated him for letting them take her mother, “Because you are precious, your mom loves you and she and I would never let anything happen to you. I had to go to you first and if I had a chance to do it again, I would pick you. Always.”

She whimpered and he reached out to rub her back while fighting off his own tears and worries. He didn’t know if Heiran was bleeding out somewhere, only seconds away from death, he had no idea if she was waiting for him to come rescue her. 

But he couldn’t leave Lucy like this. He had to calm her down.

“Lucy, I need you to be strong for your mom, okay? I know it’s hard, sunshine, but I need to take deep breaths and follow my instructions.” He encouraged softly.

“Okay.” Her voice was so small that it cracked his heart.

“Why don’t you shower and put on some new clothes? You’re probably tired too, you can nap.” He cajoled.

She nodded and he watched her sadly as she forced herself up and to the bags of clothes. Once she closed the bathroom door, he sat guard outside her door, worried that if he wasn’t standing between her and the outside world, that someone would try to take her away again.

Without her in front of him, Mark couldn’t distract himself with caring for Lucy. This gave his emotions a chance to unlock and in a second he was holding his head and sobbing. He knew that there was a 50/50 chance Heiran was still alive. 

But that second 50 is what crushed every bone, every inch of strength he had left in his body. If anything happened to her, he wasn’t sure he could recover. He'd have nothing. 

Because Heiran was _it_ for him. 

There was no more lying to himself.

She was all he had. All he wanted.

He sat up with a morbid realization. 

Lucy would be an orphan. 

Maybe Jaebum was still alive then he would be her technical guardian if he didn’t get the annulment but Mark still had no idea what his role in any of this was. 

Mark stared at the bathroom door as a strange sense of peace settled over him. 

He’d take Lucy. 

They could move to another country somewhere far away from this hell. He had money saved up, he could raise her and look after her. He'd give her anything her little heart wanted. But a future like that meant a future without Heiran. Neither of them was ready for that.

The worst part was not knowing. 

He was stuck in limbo with and without her. 

And looking back he couldn’t even pinpoint what he could’ve done differently. 

With those bugs, his Boss had an ear into everything they were planning. There was no way they could outsmart him. Mark just had to come to terms with the fact that the minute he stepped into that restaurant, he was going to lose. 

Even if Heiran and Jaebum had stayed away, Jackson would’ve dragged her there and made him choose. There was nothing he could’ve done to stop this from happening.

It was an endless loop of ending up in the same place. 

A knock on the door had him jumping to his feet and pulling out his gun. 

No one knew he was here. Not even Jaebum, if he was alive. 

He was sure he covered his tracks. Did someone from GOT7 find him that quickly? He moved on the tips of his toes as he neared the front door and peeked through the hole. Hesitating for a second, he cracked the door open and stared through the gap.

“Jinyoung? How did you find me here?” He asked suspiciously. He wasn’t sure he could trust anyone. 

“I tracked you here, it wasn’t hard. I’m smart, remember?” He said with a blank look on his face.

Mark was on edge and had no time for his quips, “What are you doing here?”

“Want to know what I found out today?” He said soullessly. 

Mark narrowed his eyes, “What?”

“That you flipped on us and there’s a bounty on your head. Everyone wants you dead.” 

He raised his brow, “Including you?”

Jinyoung shook his head, “No. I want something else.”

“What is it?” He asked warily when he noticed two suitcases near Jinyoung's legs. 

“I want to help you burn GOT7 to the fucking ground.”

\-----

Yugyeom snapped the latex gloves on his hands and walked around the crime scene, his eyes studying everything carefully before coming around to the detectives.

“Any ID?” The detective asked the medical examiner. 

She shook her head, “None. Nothing in his pockets too.”

“Who comes to a restaurant without their wallet?” He asked his partner.

He shrugged, scribbling in his notepad, “Maybe he knew his date would pay.”

“Did they have a reservation? This place is usually packed.” 

He referred to his notes, “Yes but it was under John Smith.”

“Looks like he didn’t want anyone to know he was here.” He muttered while scanning the body.

“Considering his dates brought guns, I can see why.” His partner snorted.

Yugyeom was hovering behind the two men, perked up, “Wait, I know him.”

“You do?” The detectives turned to him.

“Not personally but I know his face. It was all over the news. He’s the new VP of Finance. He has my friend’s old job.” Yugyeom said while pointing to the body.

They turned back to the corpse on the ground, “Oh shit, this is him? Jackson Wang. Holy shit.”

“The media is going to go nuts. A newly appointed executive gunned down in the middle of the day in an empty restaurant.” The detective said with a sigh.

Yugyeom looked around, “Why was the restaurant empty anyways?”

“We don’t know. All the staff are missing too. I sent uniformed officers to track them down, luckily we found the schedule posted in the break room.” One of the detectives explained.

“Two nondescript men walked into this place with guns. These aren’t just regular people. We need to find out who they are and who they’re working for.” The older detective stated while standing.

“What’s that?” Yugyeom asked, pointing to some wires.

“Looks like he was wearing a wire but the recording was broken in the struggle. We can’t hear what’s on it.” The wire was placed into an evidence bag. 

“It doesn’t make sense.” Yugyeom murmured, “Why would he be wearing a wire to talk to two gunmen? These look like bodyguards.”

The detective looked at him skeptically, “What are you saying?”

“Are you sure these were the people he came here to meet?” He asked.

Two uniformed detectives walked through the door, “Sir, we finished speaking to the staff. They all said the same thing. After the victim was seated, the two gunmen forced them to clear everyone out but they did it quietly and slowly.”

“So they didn’t want to attract attention. Okay.” He said with a shrug.

The officer shook his head, “But they were told not to disturb a specific table other than the victims.”

“What?” Everyone perked up.

The police officer looked at his notes, “There were other diners left in the restaurant with the victim. The hostess confirmed it was the party under the reservation Mary Smith.”

“They were together…”

“Yeah. They were a couple.”

The detective looked perplexed, “What the hell? So there were witnesses?”

“None of this makes sense.” Yugyeom interrupted. “Look at where the bodies are. One behind the counter and two facing each other. What exactly happened here? Did they all just take turns shooting each other? Why was one of them standing so far away?”

“Well, I’ll need to double-check but I’m not entirely sure either of them actually shot anyone. The bullet wounds don’t match their guns and the guns hadn’t even been fired.” The medical examiner said.

“It must’ve been the couple. They were the only other ones there at the time of death.” The detective deduced. 

“Um, sir?” One of the detectives called. “One more thing. I showed the hostess the pictures of the victims, she said that the two gunmen weren’t they the ones meeting up with the other victim. It was someone else.”

He groaned, “You’re telling me there were three other people here?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Any CCTV footage?” Yugyeom clicked his tongue.

“None. The cameras cut off just before their scheduled reservations.” One of the detectives said.

The detective said, “Maybe this was a business deal gone wrong. Either way, it was premeditated for sure.”

“Uh…detectives? You might want to see this.”

They turned to the medical examiner who had unbuttoned Jackson’s shirt. Right on the side of his stomach was a tattoo. 

G7

“After decades we finally have a member of GOT7 in our custody.” He grumbled as Yugyeom leaned close to get a better look. 

“And he’s dead…”


	31. Thirtyfirst

_“Morning, baby.”_

_He must've been a saint in a previous life because waking up to her purring voice against his ears had to be a blessing. Mark rolled over and grinned at Heiran, “Morning, baobei.”_

_She smiled before leaning close to him. “You’re warmer than I am.”_

_Laughing, he cupped her cheek and dipped his head down before kissing her. She hummed happily, arching into his hold and pressing closer into his mouth. Slowly rolling on his back, Herian climbed up over him._

_Everything about her felt so nice and his heart filled with something so tender and sweet when she sunk her fingers into his hair. He could taste the smile on her lips when she parted her mouth and he felt everything fall into place. He smoothed a hand down the curve of her back and she shivered before leaning further over him._

_“I love you.” She whispered against his lips._

_Before he could speak, the sound of a cold_ click _had him freezing and pulling away. His eyes widened when he stared over her shoulder where the barrel of a gun was pointed to the back of her head._

_“Mark.” She whispered, her face was suddenly wracked with horror._

_His eyes filled with tears as he trembled under her, “Baob—“_

_Before he could do anything to save her, the gunshot rang out._

Mark sat up with a gasp, sweat dripping down the sides of his neck as he snapped out of the dream world and into reality. His hands were shaking when he pressed them to his face, a sick twist in his gut making his head spin. 

He shifted in bed, trying to ignore the image of a gun to Heiran’s head. He turned onto his side and flinched when Lucy was curled up next to him, hugging a pillow. He was sure that he had tucked her in the next room. She must’ve come in next to him in the middle of the night. 

Maybe he wasn’t the only one with nightmares. 

He smoothed some of the hair out of her face and watched her while he was still in his sleep-deprived haze. She looked so peaceful, nothing at all like the distraught look that had been on her face the hours she was awake. 

This little girl deserved to have her mother with her. 

Mark quietly got out of his bed before pressing his pillow on the other side of Lucy. He tucked the blanket tighter around her and left his bedroom. Groaning softly, he rubbed his face as he stepped into his living room. 

“You okay?”

Mark flinched and looked over at Jinyoung who was sitting on his couch draped in a blanket with his laptop open on his lap. After showing up at his door, Mark had advised that Jinyoung stay with them to secure his safety. 

Hopefully, it would take a while before anyone in GOT7 noticed him missing. 

“Nightmare.” Mark mumbled as he moved to sit on the opposite end of the couch. “Can they track your laptop or internet connection?”

“I’m not a rookie.” Jinyoung snorted before scanning him wearily, “Fuck, you look like a mess.”

He slouched, “I feel like one too.”

“Lucy came out looking for her mom.” Jinyoung admitted softly, “I reminded her that she’s not here, so I told her where your room was. Is that okay?”

“Yeah, thanks. She’s sleeping which is good.”

Jinyoung nodded, “I’ve been trying to track Heiran or Jaebum but I’m not getting anything. Their phones aren’t pinging so either they’re off or destroyed.”

Mark had filled Jinyoung in on everything when he showed up at his door and Jinyoung had done the same. Shortly after the cops had shown up to the restaurant, everyone was notified about Jackson’s murder and that it was Mark who had done it. 

Then the gauntlet was thrown. 

Whoever killed Mark first would get a million-dollar reward. 

For all intents and purposes, Mark had turned on GOT7 and was going rouge. 

And he had to be put down. 

“You could have a million dollars right now.” Mark whispered softly. 

Jinyoung stiffened and stared at his friend, “Excuse me?”

“I was asleep one room over. You could’ve shot or suffocated me and turned in my corpse for a cool million.” Mark said morbidly.

Jinyoung scowled, “What’s your question?”

“Why didn’t you?” He asked, exasperated.

“Because you’re my fucking friend.” He hissed, “And I’m not going to kill you for money.”

Mark softened and was even getting a little choked up, “Thanks.”

“Now if it was 10 million, we would be having a slightly different conversation.” Jinyoung teased with a dry smile.

Mark chuckled and shook his head, “Thank you. I-I don’t think I could do this alone.”

“You were his right hand. For him to turn on you like that? It’s fucked up.” Jinyoung’s face dropped. He knew how Mark had idolized their Boss and the gang. He viewed it as salvation and their leader as the saviour. 

Mark nodded solemnly, “He even pinned Jackson’s murder on me so that everyone coming after me would be angrier.”

“I can’t be on the same side as them.” He said softly, looking up at his friend. While Mark had spent most of his time admiring the gang, Jinyoung had spent most of his time quietly admiring Mark. 

He never thought much about where his own loyalties lied until he watched his own gang turned on Mark. 

Mark gave him a smile, honest genuine and filled with way more emotion than either was used to, “I’m not a lucky man, Jinyoung. But hell, I’m lucky I have you.”

“Gross.”

Mark rolled his eyes, “Ha ha. Who do you think would be most likely to kill me? Normally, I’d say Jackson.”

“This is morbid.”Jinyoung grumbled. 

Mark sat down next to him, “C’mon, guess. I better not die at the hands of some shaky handed newbie who’s never killed someone.”

“What if it was Yeonhee?” Jinyoung offered. 

A chuckle escaped Mark, “Yeah, she’d love that, I bet.”

He looked over at Jinyoung, his smile drying up when he saw darkness painted across his face, “What’s wrong?”

“I think something’s going on with Yeonhee.” He admitted. 

Mark’s brows raised, “Why?”

“I haven’t seen her once and it’s been a few days.” He said.

Mark pursed his lips, “Maybe she’s just busy.”

“No, you don’t get it. She comes by my office at least once a day, even when she’s busy.” He pressed.

Mark tilted his head with a quirked brow, “Really?”

“I-no, it’s not like that. I just mean that she’s always bothering me, so it’s strange that all of a sudden she’s MIA.” He stuttered.

Mark watched curiously, his eyes trailing up the red blush that was swarming Jinyoung’s neck, “Well, where would she have gone?”

“I don’t know. But it was so abrupt, something isn’t right, Mark.”

Mark’s expression darkened, “How bad do you think it is?”

“I…I don’t know yet. It’s just unlike her.” He said. 

Mark nodded, his mind racing to put together a plan, “Do you want me to look for her?”

“No. No, let’s focus on finding Heiran first.” Jinyoung said firmly, “Ever since our Boss showed his true colours, I’ve just been paranoid about everything.” 

Mark let out a long breath, “We can’t find her either. How can two people just fall off the face of the earth? Everything was so sudden, they had no time to plan for anything. Where could they have gone?”

“I don’t know, but Jaebum isn’t some random low-level gangster. He’s smart, he’s done this for a while now. If it came to Heiran, he’d find a way to keep her safe.” Jinyoung could see the trepidation on Mark’s face. His friend had probably never felt this helpless in a long time.

Mark tried to relax and not let his fears of uncertainty consume him, “You’re right.”

“But there is one option you’re not considering.”

“Which is?” He asked.

Jinyoung watched his face carefully, “That something happened to he—“

“No.” Mark barked, “No, I’m not considering that.”

Jinyoung sighed, “You need to consider it. He could’ve had people waiting outside in case someone escaped.”

“Stop.” Mark snarled.

Jinyoung wasn’t scared but he backed off, “Fine. But I don’t know how to help anymore. No credit card activity, no cellphone calls, and none of their cars have been recorded on street cameras. I don’t know where to start looking.”

“When I killed the VP of Legal a car was following me. I mean, I think it was. It was a black town car. I can’t remember the entire license plate but I think there was a BX3.” Mark squinted his eyes as he tried to remember more, “It seemed familiar at the time but I couldn’t place it.”

Jinyoung turned to his laptop again, “It’ll take a while until I can figure out who it’s registered to.”

Mark reached over and gently shut his computer, “Go to sleep first. You’re running on fumes.”

Jinyoung tried to pry his laptop open, “Okay but let me ju—“ 

“No, sleep. We’ll have time to sort this out tomorrow.” Mark said sternly, keeping his hand flat on his computer.

“Fine. Fine. But only if you do the same.” Jinyoung grumbled petulantly. 

Mark nodded in agreement, “Yeah, I will.”

“What are you going to do tomorrow?” Jinyoung asked while putting his laptop away.

“Jaebum left a list of his safe houses in case we needed it. I’m going to visit each one, she has to be somewhere.” Mark shoved his hands into his hair and let out a tired sigh.

“It’s not your fault, you know that, right?” Jinyoung said softly. 

Mark winced, “That’s not true. Fuck, everything bad that’s happened to her is either my fault, Jaebum’s fault or her dad’s fault. And trust me, being on the same list of men as those two says a lot.”

“That’s not fair.” Jinyoung refuted. 

Mark narrowed his eyes at her, “What’s happened to Heiran ever since we came into her life is what isn’t fair.” 

“Mark. Stop.” Jinyoung snapped, “For once in your life, just stop. Stop trying to do mental gymnastics to find ways to blame yourself for everything. Just stop. You know how she reacted when you went dark for two weeks? My phone blew up with texts and calls every 30 minutes. You don't do that when you think someone is ruining your life.” His body relaxed and his voice came out softer, “You asked me how to tell if someone is in love.” 

“No. Stop.” Mark fired back, his heart thudding the way it did when you felt guilty. 

“I still don’t know the answer. But Heiran worrying about you when she was mad at you, Heiran feeling safest around the person who thinks he puts her in danger, Heiran trusting you with Lucy is about as close to love as I can think of.” Jinyoung watched Mark’s eyes soften a fraction before they froze over and almost looked defensively angry. 

“Jinyoung. God. What is wrong with you?” Mark spat out.

“What’s wrong with _you_?” Jinyoung bit back, “You shouldn’t be so fucking resistant to the idea that someone might love you despite all of the fucked up shit you do. Not unless you _want_ to be alone. Not unless you're choosing to purposely be ignorant of what's right in front of you.”

“I’m going to sleep.” Mark whispered, standing, “You should too.” 

"Only when you stop punishing yourself."

\-----

_Love. Love. Love._

Those words rang loud as Mark crossed off another safehouse from his list.

Was that what it was? Love?

That was a heavy word, one that didn’t fully make sense to him. But recently, the word didn’t make his stomach churn uncomfortably. Instead it filled him with a strange sticky warmth in his gut. 

Heiran was smart and she had her own conflicts with love that she wouldn’t let herself feel it so recklessly, especially with someone like him. There was no way she loved him. Maybe just liked. She liked him. He could live with that. 

He liked her too. 

Sighing, he put his car into gear and drove to the last location. He left Lucy with Jinyoung, something that he was reluctant to do when he walked out of the house that morning. He drove further out where houses were sparse before pulling into the grassy driveway in front of a modest wooden cabin. 

She had to be here. There was nowhere else. 

He walked around the perimeter of the house, before jiggling the lock and walking inside. Immediately he knew she wasn’t inside. There was a layer of dust over everything and not a single sign that anyone was living there. 

Regardless, he walked into every room and searched thoroughly and desperately for any inch of life. 

And he came up with nothing. 

His heart sunk into the pits of his stomach. What was he supposed to do now?

Lingering in one of the bedrooms, Mark sat on the edge of one of the bed and looked around. He was sure Jaebum would’ve brought her here. Jaebum was selfish but not enough to endanger Heiran’s life. If they weren’t here then that would mean they weren’t able to make it to a safehouse. He hung his head and fought back the itch in his eyes. He had no way of finding her now. If she was even still alive. 

Now he had to come to terms with the fact that maybe his hope had been false and he was foolish to hold onto it so desperately. He failed to keep her safe. She died because of him. The mother of a child, the only woman that he really felt something for.

He rubbed his eyes when a call came through, breaking him out of his trace, “Yeah?”

“I managed to track down the partial license plate to the vehicle you saw. And it wasn’t easy.” Jinyoung reported.

Mark cleared his throat, “Who’s it to?”

“Heiran’s old company. Turns out they have a fleet of cars for the use of their staff.”

Mark frowned and stood to pace around the room, “But VP of Legal was dead. He was the only one that would’ve known Jackson and the Boss.”

“Maybe someone else followed him to where you guys were.” Jinyoung suggested.

Mark shook his head, “That means they must’ve seen me kill him but no one’s called the police. His departure wasn’t questioned by the company at all.” He said, “Plus I’m pretty sure the car was following me and our Boss, not the VP.”

Jinyoung made a noise from the back of his throat, “Why did you think that the VP was the only person from her company that was in on it?”

“Who else could it be? GOT7 wouldn’t risk too many people getting involved.” Mark asked.

“Exactly. That’s why they killed one of them.”

“What are you saying?”

He could hear Jinyoung’s proud smile, “These car fleets are only for executive members of the company and it wouldn’t make sense for GOT7 to involve any of the other VPs in getting Jackson hired.”

“They’d want someone more important in their pockets.” Mark said in realization, “They’d want the CEO.”

“The CEO knows everything, it doesn’t make sense that he had no idea what was happening with SmartLogic, not unless he _did_ know but chose to let it happen. Which can only mean one thing.” Jinyoung confirmed. 

Mark felt the air rush out of his lung, “He was in on it from the start.”

“Heiran is brilliant, but what are the chances that a company with an entirely male executive board finally hires one woman and she is incredibly young with minimal experience at the executive level _and_ she’s the daughter of the King of money laundering?" Jinyoung said.

Mark was stunned, “Jesus fuck. Her dad is working with the CEO. He’s probably the reason she got the job.”

“I bet the fact that she’s amazing at it was just an added bonus.” Jinyoung added.

“It makes sense. That’s why he never gave her a hard time about me being around. He must’ve been playing along until it was time to fire her.” It was starting to come together, a picture that used to only be in fragments were starting to fall in place.

“Think about it, her missing work and dropping the ball near the end of it should’ve been addressed early on, but he only brought up her performance issues when it came time to fire her. He probably let her get away with all of that because he was going to use it against her.”

“Fuck. Fuck!” Mark boomed, nearly punching a hole through the wall.

Jinyoung clicked his tongue, “We wondered how Jackson was able to get in, he could do whatever the fuck he wanted as long as the CEO of the damn company let him."

Mark hurried down the stairs and started for the door, “I need you to start digging for stuff on him. His financials, his meetings, where he’s been going. I want to know exactly what he does.”

“Got it.” 

Mark hung up and just as he reached for the door, his foot caught on the wooden floor panels and he stumbled.

\-----

_“Sunshine?” Heiran looked around, her lips falling from a smile and into a concerned grimace, “Sunshine? This isn’t funny. Where are you? Lucy?”_

_Her heart raced and suddenly everything around her blurred as her eyes swept for her daughter. Where the fu—_

_“M-Mom?”_

_Heiran spun and a gasp escaped her throat when she stared at her daughter._

_Then a smile curved up her lips, “There you are! Come here, sweetie.”_

_Lucy giggled before racing into Heiran’s arms but before she could touch her, a masked man stepped out._

_And before she could save her, the man pulled the trigger._

Heiran sat up with a loud gasp, her heart thudding so hard that it hurt her chest. She hadn’t even realized that she’d fallen asleep, “Lucy? LUCY?!”

“Ssh. Ssh.” Jaebum’s arms came around her, pulling her against his chest. “It was just a bad dream.”

It wasn’t the same, it was never the same when Jaebum tried to console her. Not when she had to leave her daughter behind. 

\-----

_Jaebum knew something was wrong the minute he walked into the parking lot and noticed his car was still sitting parked and the attendant was nowhere to found. He grabbed his key out of the attendant’s booth and ran back to the restaurant._

_Something was very wrong._

_And that suspicion was only confirmed when Heiran wasn’t where he had left her. He peeked inside to see her standing with her hands up and a gun trained to the back of her head. Moving stealthily, he snuck in, keeping his body low and ducking behind tables._

_He watched, tensed when Lucy showed up. He kept his eyes on Mark, on the devastation that flashed across his face and he knew what decision he was going to make. With his gun ready, he waited for Mark to grab Lucy and kill the man that had her._

_Then he sent a bullet through the head of Heiran’s captor and one clean through Jackson’s forehead. Without thinking, he grabbed Heiran’s arm and pulled her through the doors when sirens started to near. He didn’t know how many of GOT7’s men were hiding, ready to storm the restaurant at the sound of bullets flying._

_He needed to trust that Mark knew what he was doing._

_When Heiran screamed and fought against him determined to run back to Lucy, he had to drag her away with the hope that until they could be reunited, Mark would keep the little girl safe._

_He wasn’t sure Heiran would speak to him again if something happened to her Sunshine._

\-----

“Mark’s looking after her. You know he’d never let anything happen to her.” Jaebum tried to reason. 

Heiran just pushed him away and curled up on the thin cot that they were sharing. She was still wearing her clothes, refusing to change into the spare clothes that Jaebum had dug out. She just closed her eyes and fisted Mark’s dog tags in her hand.

“Seo…”

“You don’t know that.” She rasped, her voice thick from tears that hadn’t dried yet, “Maybe his men found Mark and Lucy outside the restaurant, you didn’t see them leave. Or maybe they were ambushed when they were trying to flee. We have no idea if they’re even alive.”

“I had to save you. Mark had Lucy.” He said exasperatedly. 

She turned her head away, “We could’ve stayed and left together.”

“I didn’t know what was waiting for us outside those doors.” This wasn’t the first time he has to explain himself. But he didn’t have the heart to get mad because he knew that it was a hard pill for her to swallow to not know if her daughter was safe while she was still alive.

Heiran chewed on her bottom lip, “Can you just text him to see if they’re okay?”

He had turned off and tossed their phones the minute they hit the road, “The second we turn on a phone and send out a text or a call, they could track us. No doubt they’re trying to track us, they’re probably looking for Mark and they think you’re with him.”

“But if they want Mark and Lucy’s with Mark doesn’t that me—“

Jaebum looked her dead in the eye, “No, listen, you need to stop thinking like this. Mark won’t let her get involved in the crossfire.”

“But—“

“No buts. We can’t afford to think like that now.” He said firmly, squeezing her arm. “He knows Lucy is important to you, he won’t mess around and risk her safety.”

Heiran closed her eyes and hugged her knees. The brokenness inside of her wasn’t new but she didn’t think it was something she’d ever have to revisit. It was like there were a hundred little knives stabbing her with every breath. She was shivering, it was cold but the emptiness in her heart was the worst, “What would you have done to Lucy?”

Jaebum’s brows furrowed in confusion, “Huh?”

“You threatened her. What were you going to do?” She sniffled and wiped at the tears that slipped down her jaw.

He looked bewildered, “You mean with the wanted posters? I already told you, I just wanted to scare you away from going to the police. I wasn’t going to actually do anything to her. I knew you wouldn’t risk calling my bluff.”

She shook her head, “No, you threatened to take her.”

He scoffed, “No, I didn’t.”

“Yeah, my dad…he had one of his men take Lucy from my yard because he wanted to keep her safe because…you had made a threat against her. Fuck.” She quieted as the realization clicked. 

He gripped her shoulders, ”Heiran I never did that. I never went after Lucy. Your dad must’ve lied.”

“Then why would he have taken her?” Her head was throbbing. Everything was making her sick.

Jaebum narrowed his eyes in thought, “Did anything happen to her?”

“No, Mark got her back from the guy, actually now that I think about it it was Jackson who took her.” 

Jaebum pursed his lips before leaning his back against the wall and rested his head, “Huh, so she was taken just to be given right back?”

She tried to remember that night, she had been so grateful to have her back that she had barely paid attention to what Mark had told her, “I think Mark said that Jackson volunteered for the assignment because he knew that sending anyone else to a child could end badly.”

“But clearly we have proof that Jackson is a snake.” Jaebum said bitterly.

She looked at him curiously, patting her at her face, “So you think he was lying?”

“I think he was hiding something from Mark.” Jaebum surmised. 

Her hand started to shake as she reached out to hold his wrist, “Mark said that my father is involved in trafficking. Jaebum, what if something happened? What if—“

“God.” Jaebum shivered at the mere idea before squeezing her hands, “Look, she’s fine. We know that Mark has her, you can’t start making up theories that will drive you insane. And Lucy came home safe that day, whatever your father was planning, it wasn’t to keep Lucy, why else would he suddenly promote Jackson if giving Lucy back was a mistake?”

She whimpered and held her head, “He wouldn’t do that to his own granddaughter would he?”

“He wouldn’t.” He said with so much confidence that it almost calmed her.

But she was too much of a cynic now that she was sitting in this dilapidated room with her ex-boyfriend, fake husband and crime lord, “But Mark’s parents did it to him.”

“He told you?” Jaebum seemed surprised at the revelation. Mark kept his past wrapped up and he didn’t think he’d ever be willing to open up to her. 

“Jaebum I’m going to be sick. What if they’re planning on—” 

“Until we get more information, speculating is just going to kill you.” He said sternly. 

She rocked from side to side, “I know but—“

“Shh.” Jaebum hushed sharply, stilling when the sound of a door opening creaked above their heads. 

Her alarmed eyes met his they just sat completely frozen as footsteps moved through the room. When they had fled the scene, Jaebum struggled over where to go. The killing of Jackson would surely lead to GOT7 sending in the cavalry. Hiding out at his regular safehouses seemed too obvious and vulnerable. 

So he had chosen the furthest one in the city and kept them locked in the hidden underground room until they felt safe enough to go above ground. 

Heiran squeezed her eyes shut when the footsteps moved around the entire lower floor before they jogged up the stairs. 

“Don’t move or make a sound.” He whispered. “They’ll just leave.”

She held her breath until the footsteps finally came back downstairs. They could hear a muffled voice over them. She frowned, it sounded like they were talking, but to who? Were there two people in the house?

Jaebum sat up, straining to hear what the voice was saying when a loud thump slammed against the floor. His eyes widened as the person above began pressing against the door that led to their hiding spot. 

When it heaved open, Jaebum pushed Heiran behind him and held his gun firm in his hand as legs appeared by the top of the staircase. Jaebum’s entire body was wound tight until the mystery person came into sight.

“Mark?”

Mark’s shoulders sagged and it was like something was lifted off of him when Jaebum and Heiran came into view, “Thank fucking god.”

“Lucy? Where’s Lucy? Why isn’t she with you? Did something happen?” Heiran rained questions down on him in a panicked frenzy. She gripped his arms, her mind swimming. 

Mark held her wrists tenderly, his eyes running over her face, “She’s safe. Jinyoung is with her.”

“Jinyoung…” Jaebum said worriedly.

“Left GOT7, just like me. He’s helping me.” Mark confirmed with a shaky nod but his eyes never left Heiran.

“Will you bring Lucy here?” She asked, her eyes pleading. “I need to see her myself.”

He cupped her cheeks, the emotion so vulnerable and raw on his face as he pressed his forehead against hers, “Of course, anything for you. I’ll get Jinyoung to drive her over now.”

Relief flooded her features before she collapsed in his arms. He closed his eyes and just held her tight, “Thank god you’re okay.” He whispered. “You scared the shit out of me."

She breathed him in feeling safe and steady for the first time. In retrospect, all of her fears felt silly because time and time again Mark had proved to always protect her. 

“I’m okay too, in case you were worried about me at all.” Jaebum called out, bored. 

Mark pulled away from Heiran and blinked at Jaebum who lazily stared back. Mark reached out and wrapped his arms around him in a hug. Jaebum froze, his body stiff and his eyes wide at the friendly gesture. 

“Uh…okay.” Jaebum muttered, awkwardly patting him on the back. 

Mark tightened his grip on him, “Thank you for saving her.”

Jaebum shifted uncomfortably at the weight in Mark’s voice before pushing the man off of him, “Yeah, yeah. What would you do without me? I’m basically carrying this team on my back.”

Heiran frowned and reached for Mark’s hand. Jaebum cleared his throat, “Do you want me to go pick Lucy up?”

“Actually that might be safer than asking Jinyoung. GOT7 is after me, they think I’m the one that killed Jackson.” Mark said.

Jaebum winced, “Fuck, I’m sorr—“

“Don’t apologize. This worked out because they don’t suspect your involvement. You can be our eyes and ears when we have to stay hidden.” Mark said.

Jaebum nodded, “Okay, warn Jinyoung I’m coming, I don’t need the nerd trying to shoot me.”

“I will. We’re staying at one of your safehouses, I’ll text you the address. I packed a bunch of things, bring them with Lucy.” Mark instructed. 

Jaebum tilted his head with a small smile, “You used it.”

“Yeah, don’t know what I would’ve done without them.” Mark said while typing on his phone, to distract himself from Jaebum’s stare. 

Jaebum grinned before walking up the staircase and closing the door. Alone, Mark and Heiran paused to take each other in, then she launched into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist before clawing her fingers into his back, anchoring herself to him. 

He didn’t miss a beat, catching her with ease and tucking his nose with a deep breath, “Fuck, I thought you were dead. I couldn't breathe. Fuck.”

“Me too.” She whispered against his ear, “Thought they might’ve caught you and Lucy outside the restaurant. We had to ditch our phones, we had no idea what was happening. I kept imagining never hearing from you again.”

He slid down against the wall, sitting on the cot with her still in his arms and lap. He just needed to feel her against him to remind himself that she was alive and breathing. He pressed his nose against her neck and took a deep inhale of her skin. 

He used to always think she was beautiful but at this moment she was the most beautiful woman to ever walk the earth. 

Because she was alive and with him.

She pulled away and he reluctantly loosened his grip on her so that she could get a look at him. Her fingers brushed against his cheek, “You said GOT7 is after you.”

“Yeah.” Mark whispered, nudging her nose with his, “Jinyoung said they put a bounty on me. Apparently, my life is worth one million dollars.”

Her face fell empathetically, “I’m so sorry this is happening to you.” 

“Why are you apologizing? You know what your father is doing, I’m not shedding a tear over leaving GOT7.” He grunted.

“But you spent a huge part of your life with them. It must be hard to just cut them off and now they're doing whatever they can to kill. That's not okay.”

“I’m doing fine, I promise, after I learned the truth, I lost all hope. This isn't much of a surprise, I saw this coming and knew they'd react like this. But honestly, I didn’t even really give it that much thought. I was too worried about you." He slipped his fingers under her shirt to pet at her skin. 

Her brow was set and her jaw was tight just like it was when she'd be facing off against someone in a boardroom, "We won't let them get close enough to you to even take a shot. I promise."

He said nothing as his fingers reached for the chain that was peeking out from the collar for her blouse. She stiffened when he pulled out his dog tags hanging around her neck. 

“I’ll give them back.” She blurted out. 

He smirked, hooking his finger on the chain, “I think it looks pretty good on you. I just didn’t realize you still wore it.”

A blush rushed through her face, “I thought it’d be like a good luck charm when we went to meet Jackson.”

His fingers trailed under her shirt and stroking across her collarbone with featherlight grazes before looking up at her, “Maybe it was.”

“Please let me kiss you.” She begged suddenly while looking deeply into his eyes. It was an aching gnaw at her soul that was taunting her. Lips so pretty and warm that could make her feel like she was floating. 

Love. 

That’s what this had to be. 

How terrifying. 

Heiran saw the conflict on his face and just sighed. No matter what she wanted, she would never push him into something he wasn’t ready for. Mark never did anything without reason. But god, she wanted to kiss him so badly. 

Instead, she leaned up and pressed her lips to his forehead. She could feel his body shake from a silent laugh as he trailed his fingers up and down her back. 

“One day.” He promised softly. 

She wasn’t sure what he meant. If he meant that one day they could kiss or that one day they could turn whatever this relationship was into something solid or if one day things could be normal. 

But whatever he meant, she trusted him. 

One day. 

\-----

Lucy had burst into tears when Jaebum brought her and Jinyoung to the safehouse. 

Heiran was no better, sobbing into her daughter’s embrace. Heiran didn’t have all the answers when Lucy sniffled with questions about the restaurant, but she was glad to be able to even hold her. She hugged her tight and sat on the couch, pressing little kisses when Lucy would nuzzle in close to her mom. 

Now that all of them were in one place, they felt more comfortable staying on the upper floors of the house. They didn’t know how long they’d have before their location would be exposed, so they had to figure out their next move fast, but for now, they basked in all of them being together.

Jaebum raised his brow when Mark was sorting through all the things he had packed in bags. “You packed all this stuff up? How did you have the time?”

“Yeah…I wasn’t sure what Heiran would want when I found her.” He said without looking up. 

Jinyoung picked up a glass bottle, “You thought she’d want her perfume in the midst of a gang war?”

“I was in a rush.” He muttered in embarrassment. 

Heiran grinned as Lucy squirmed out of her lap to sit next to Mark and help him pick through everything to sort out her belongings. Heiran softened when Mark absentminded reached out to caress the back of Lucy’s head before folding things. 

“Did Mark tell you what we figured out?” Jinyoung asked as he set his laptop up in the kitchen. 

Mark and Heiran met eyes before looking away, “We were just catching up.”

“You were apart for less than 24 hours.” Jaebum deadpanned.

Heiran glared at him, “Just fill me in.”

“We think the CEO of your company might be working with GOT7 and more specifically, your father.” Jinyoung spoke out.

Jaebum was stunned, “What the hell?” 

“A car followed Mark when he killed the VP of Legal, we tracked it to the cars your company supplies to your execs.” Jinyoung explained.

Heiran looked hesitant, “How do you know it’s him, though? All executives have access to the cars.”

“The Boss won’t need another executive. He needs someone powerful on his side.” Mark said. He followed Heiran with his eyes, watching the way she reacted. She had been close to the CEO for a long time.

“No. There’s no way.” She shook her head in refusal.

“We don’t have hard proof yet but we think he’s been getting a cut and that’s why GOT7 managed to go undetected all these years. We think your dad convinced the CEO to make you an executive.” Mark said, squeezing her arm.

Heiran still shook his off, “I don’t believe that. Why go through me if the CEO was already in on it?”

Jaebum’s mind started following along, “Probably to pin it on you if things go wrong, the CEO probably wanted plausible deniability. I mean look, they fired you the minute they had a reason and replaced you with Jackson.” 

Heiran scoffed in disbelief, “You’re saying my father got me the executive position or the sole purpose of getting me to clean his money and then got me fired for Jackson?”

“I bet he finalized his plan to have someone from GOT7 take over and decided to get you fired to properly have Jackson step in.” Jinyoung called from the kitchen.

“That why he came to me with that deal.” Jaebum whispered, “He used me to create a fake threat to force Heiran to jeopardize her career so that there was a reason to fire her.”

Mark nodded and crossed his arms, “He knew you would do anything to get back in her life and managed to get extra territory _and_ a catalyst to set things off.”

“We’ll need to prove this first. Because we can’t really do anything with our guesses, even if they’re logical.” Heiran said firmly. She forced herself to stop from spiralling into an existential crisis about her career. 

Jaebum grunted, “We can’t try sneakily recording again, what are we going to do?”

“I can try doing some digging and see if I can find dirt on the CEO.” Jinyoung said. “Maybe there’s some emails or security footage of them meeting with each other that I could use.”

“Other than that I don’t have much of a plan. We’re too exposed to try to poke around his office and I’m sure everyone’s on high alert around us.” Mark stated.

Heiran wrapped her finger around the chain she was wearing, “There must be something else. We just need to figure it out.”

“Heiran, come look at this, it’s some of your company’s financial files, can you translate them for me?” Jinyoung called out.

Heiran nodded, giving Mark and Jaebum a strained look and moved to where he was perched. 

Lucy reached for a shoebox and shook it, “What is this?”

“Some of your mom’s things.” Mark explained. 

Lucy opened the box and Mark’s curiosity got the better of him as he peeked inside as well. It was filled with letters, ticket stubs, jewelry and other little pieces of her past. Mark frowned a little, his chest itching with a feeling he was uncomfortable with.

He glanced at Jaebum, “Is this all stuff from when you guys were dating?”

Jaebum didn’t even need to check to see what he was referring to and shook his head, “No.”

“That’s where she put your ring.”

“That was the only thing of mine. Knowing her, she probably put it there because she didn’t have anywhere else for it.”

Lucy had stars in her eyes as she looked through the box, staring at each item in awe. Mark chewed on his bottom lip as he watched the little girl touching memories of her mother. 

“She has an entire past without you in it.” Jaebum said quietly, “It’s bigger than that box.”

Mark shot him a dirty look, “Are you trying to scare me off?”

“Yeah. I am.” Jaebum said with a smirk, slipping his hands into his pockets.

Mark narrowed his eyes, “I thought you were giving up?” 

“I am. But if you’re easily scared off then maybe I won’t.” Jaebum said with a smug look on his face.

Mark stepped close to him with a glower, “I don’t get scared off, Jaebum.”

“You like running.” Jaebum accused.

“Not anymore.” Mark fired back.

Jaebum nodded with a quirked brow, “I guess we'll have to wait and see.”

“We’re still sort of figuring things out between, I guess. There hasn’t really been a slow minute.” Mark admitted slowly.

Jaebum snorted, “You thought she might be dead as of an hour ago and now that she’s not you’re still dragging your feet? Don’t most people have epiphanies about how life is short after a near-death experience?”

“We’re not most people.” Mark gritted out. He couldn’t put into words how hard even kissing Heiran was. There was too much that could go wrong and he didn’t want to put a relationship with her through that. Maybe he was selfish but if she broke up with him, that would cut too deep. 

He wasn’t an idiot, just because he was relieved she was alive didn’t mean he’d be reckless.

Jaebum shook his head condescendingly, “You really haven’t changed that much have you?”

“Shut up.” Mark hissed.

“One day you’re going to wish you said something to her sooner. I know I did.”

Mark looked away from Jaebum and focused his attention on Lucy who had gone silent as she held something in her hands. She held it close to her face, scanning every inch of it, as if to memorize it.

“Who’s that?” Mark asked, staring at the picture of a brightly smiling man. 

Jaebum’s lips curved in almost a fond smile as he peered over Lucy’s shoulder, “Lucy’s dad.”

Mark’s eyes widened and looked at the photo with the same amount of scrutiny as Lucy, “Oh…you've met him?”

“Nah, I came into the picture after but she talked about him a lot.” Jaebum said lightly.

Mark chewed on the inside of his cheek, “What’s he…um…what’s he like?”

Jaebum grinned, “One of the best people to ever grace this earth.”

“Why isn’t he around?” Mark asked quietly.

Jaebum chuckled, “Tsk, tsk, it sounds like you’re digging for information.”

“Wha—“

“Box full of a past, Mark. You gotta open it yourself, no shortcuts.”

\-----

“You know what Mark told me?” Jinyoung said quietly to Heiran while they huddled together over the laptop. 

Heiran’s eyes flickered to where Mark and Jaebum were standing, speaking low amongst themselves, “Hmm?”

“That if something had happened to you, he’d take care of Lucy.”

Her eyes shifted to Jinyoung with a look of curiosity and disbelief, “What?”

“Don’t get me wrong. He made it clear that he wanted you back, but if the worst happened, he was going to step up.” He whispered. 

She gulped, her shoulders sagging, “I—I don’t know what to say to that.”

“Mark plans his life without anyone else in mind. Things have changed since Lucy came into his life…since _you_ came into his life.” Jinyoung expressed gently, touching her hand.

She frowned, “Not anyone can just step in to raise Lucy.”

Jinyoung looked surprised at Heiran’s tone, “I’m sorry, I wasn’t--he wasn’t implying that he thought he could be her dad or something. He just wouldn’t let Lucy fall into the foster system just to save himself.”

Her shoulders dropped and she hung her head as guilt crawled inside her. Jinyoung had always been so kind and understanding to her, “Yeah, you’re right, sorry, I know that’s not what he or you meant.” 

“I didn’t realize it was such a sensitive topic.” He said compassionately. 

She rested her head in her palm and looked over at the group of them standing across the room. Her eyes landed on Mark, “Jinyoung, I don’t even know what going to happen tomorrow or in an hour. I can’t think about someone else raising my daughter.”

“Even Mark?” Jinyoung asked.

Heiran imagined Mark resigning himself to being Lucy’s guardian on the chance that her mother would never come back. Mark lived a life with his parents abandoning him, he wouldn’t let the same happen to Lucy. It scared her how easily Mark could fit into her future, into a life with Lucy.

The thought of Lucy calling him _dad_ terrified her to her core. She never called Jaebum that, but Heiran knew that Lucy saw something more in Mark. 

The same thing that she was seeing. That being said, the two of them couldn't even kiss because the future was so uncertain, how could she even consider him in a permanent place like that? Being a father to Lucy, a lover to Heiran, to being a member of their family, there was no point fantasizing about that now. Not when she wasn't entirely sure what would happen to them once the dust settled. 

Lucy had been let down too many times for Heiran to make choices based on her heart.

“Even Mark.”

\-----

Yeonhee walked into his office with a gun tucked into her belt, "Sir, I've heard back from the members, no one has any leads. They've raided his apartment and her house, they're on the run."

Her Boss nodded and rubbed his forehead, "Okay, let me know once they do."

"Need anything else from me?" She asked. 

He was about to wave her off when he stopped, "Actually yes. I need you to bring me her laptop or at least her harddrive." 

"Sure, I'll go by her house. Anything in particular?" She asked. 

"I want to see if her boss sent her anything that could tie us to her. I don't trust that old suit for a second. Now that the news is reporting that Jackson was apart of GOT7, he's probably pissed that his company is being investigated for other ties." He ordered. "He must have some sort of a failsafe to take us down with him."

She nodded, "I can get Jinyoung to look it over."

"Don't. He's too close to Mark. I don't know who he'll side with."

"You're probably right, I haven't seen him around, he might've already taken off with him. I know some people that could decrypt her files and search through it. And they don't ask questions." She rattled off. 

He smiled, the same fatherly warm smile that disarmed so many people, "You're going to make me regret choosing Mark over you as my right hand, aren't you, Yeonhee? You're already so much better than he ever was."

"I'm just glad that I'm here now, nothing else matters to me than protecting GOT7. I'm not planning on making the same mistakes he did." She said with a sinister smirk. 

Her Boss matched the look on her face, "We're going to make him pay."

"You took the words out of my mouth, sir."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My update schedule will now be moved to weekly updates instead of biweekly!  
> -loviet


	32. Thirtysecond

The safehouse they were in was bigger than most regular houses, which was ironic since the entire purpose was to be incognito. 

Jaebum, Jinyoung and Mark had their own rooms and Heiran and Lucy were sharing one of their own. It was selfish of Mark to want to be in that room with them. He wanted to fall asleep with Heiran in his arms and Lucy’s cold feet pressed against his calves. But they needed to be with each other more than Mark needed to be with them. 

It wasn’t fair, so he just suffered in silence under thin blankets while staring up at the ceiling. Sometimes, if he closed his eyes really tight, he could remember the feeling of waking up to her naked heat and how difficult it was to pull himself away. 

The sound of his bedroom doorknob turning had him yanked from his thoughts. He sat up when Heiran tiptoed into his room, freezing when she saw him staring back at her. 

“Oh, um, hi.” 

He raised a brow and watched her inch closer to his bed, “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah. Lucy’s asleep I just thought I’d, you know, stop by.” She said, rocking on his heels. 

“For a friendly visit?” He teased as she lingered next to the bed. He shifted over to give her space to climb in next to him.

She climbed in under the blankets, her leg pressed to his, “Something like that.”

He let out a long breath when she leaned against him. He wanted to hold her, curl up with her, fall fast asleep with her. “Jinyoung told me how you looked after Lucy when I was gone.”

“Well, I’m the guy who didn’t save her mom, I think I owed it to her.” He said. Memories of Lucy’s tear-streaked face flashed in his mind. Sometimes they’d share a look, one too heavy for a 10-year-old. He couldn’t exactly decipher what the look meant if it was fear or gratitude or maybe she was just looking at him. 

Either way, he couldn’t stop feeling the same way he did whenever he saw pictures of himself as a child.

“I made you promise to always save her first.” She reminded him as she tilted her head back to get a better look.

He nodded, “And I always will. But it wasn’t easy making a decision that could’ve killed you.”

“Do you normally get this worked up over consequences?”

“No. I don’t.” He said earnestly, staring into her eyes hoping she’d see exactly why this was an exception.

“I never thought it’d be you when we first met. In a million years I would’ve never thought I’d feel like this about you.” She whispered. “I like you so much.”

He hummed, his body thrumming, “How much, duchess?”

“More than you like me.” She said it teasingly but his face shifted, his brow lifted and a secretive knowing look that he kept to himself washed over the rest of his features. 

She waited for him to deny her implication but he just reached out and laced his fingers with hers, “You should get back to Lucy before she wakes up and finds you missing.”

Heiran tried not to let his deflection hurt her, and just nodded, “Yeah, I should.”

“See you in the morning?” He asked. 

She nodded and he smiled. He was pretty when he smiled. No, he was spectacular when he smiled. Screw all the paintings she'd spend hours staring at. 

His smile was enough to hang in a gallery. 

He kissed the back of her hand before untangling his fingers away from hers. He sat silently, watching her slide off his bed and head out through his door.

He wondered if he’d ever tell her. 

That he didn’t like her as much as she liked him. 

Because he didn’t like her at all. 

He was pretty sure he was in love with her. 

\-----

Working together still took some getting used to. 

Jinyoung eyed Jaebum like suspicious prey refusing to coexist with a known predator. 

Heiran danced around Jaebum, trying not to be left alone in the same room with him. 

Mark managed to speak to Jaebum without anyone drawing weapons, but his patience was short.

Mark tried his best not to stare at Heiran for too long in case the others noticed.

Jinyoung basked in Heiran’s praise like a child getting candy. 

Lucy was fluttering with energy around so many adults. 

And Jaebum looked at all of them like they were in high school and he wanted to be friends. 

But somehow, they managed to find a balance so that they could be productive. 

“What about your gang? Aren’t they wondering about you?” Heiran asked Jaebum as they sat around the kitchen table pretending to eat bowls of stale cereal. 

Jaebum flipped through a set of documents that Jinyoung had printed, “They think I’m spending my time trying to kill Mark and overthrow GOT7.”

“Oh, so an average Wednesday?” Jinyoung snorted while making a cup of coffee.

Jaebum shot him a fake smile, “Ha ha."

Mark had gone to shower while they took a break. Most of the documents Jinyoung had found weren’t important or were too vague. Strange money deposits weren’t enough proof that the CEO of Heiran’s old company was working with GOT7. 

This was just one in a long line of dead ends. 

“What are we going to do?” Heiran asked as she set down another page. “There’s nothing useful here.”

Jinyoung shook his head, he was someone who worked with numbers and codes, he believed that there had to be something in these files, “Just keep looking. There has to be something here.”

“But would he be so stupid to leave a paper trail?” Jaebum asked skeptically. 

Jinyoung was firm, “We can’t give up.”

“We at least need a hint. Some sort of direction so we know what to look for. Otherwise, we’re just blindly searching.” Heiran said, exasperated at how it seemed they hit a dead end.

“Maybe one of us could meet with your Boss or something.” Jaebum suggested.

Jinyoung narrowed his eyes unsurely, “Secretly recording isn’t going to work.”

“No, but maybe we can get him to slip up or something.” Jaebum offered. 

Heiran was incredulous and how foolish the plan sounded, “That’s too risky. He’ll figure it out and try to hurt you guys. If he figures out you’re helping us then we’ll lose the upper hand of having you on our side. And there’s no way he’ll trust Jinyoung when he’s just ditched them and is best friends with Mark.”

“I guess that’s true.” Jinyoung relented. 

She heard the shower cut off and stood up, “Maybe Mark has a better idea.”

The boys grunted in acknowledgement before delving back into their ridiculous plans as she knocked on Mark’s door, “Mark?”

She turned the knob and peeked inside before wandering inside, waiting for him to come out. Her nose scrunched up when a strange chemical smell wafted into the room. She pursed her lips as she knocked on the bathroom door, “Mark? Are you done yet?”

A sharp gasp escaped her lips as she stumbled back when Mark stepped out of the bathroom. Her eyes widened at the mop of damp black hair slicked off his forehead. Her throat dried at the change, suddenly the intimidating chill that his face would give him with his silver hair had melted in a more warm, human look. 

God, he was so attractive it made her insides clench painfully that she nearly doubled over. She wanted to sink her fingers into his inky hair like it was a black hole. 

“Hey.” Mark murmured while running a towel through his hair. “Were you looking for me?”

She gulped, her eyes pinned on his hair that she didn’t even notice that he was still shirtless, skin warm from the shower. “Your hair.”

He ran his fingers through the wet strands, “Oh yeah, I thought it might help me blend in better when I go out. What do you think?”

Heiran was speechless as she continued to stare at his hair.

He smirked teasingly, “I’ll take that as a good sign.”

She couldn’t bother reacting to him and instead felt her hand drift up to his hair on its own. Mark’s smirk morphed into a silent gasp when her fingers curled around some strands and tugged. His eyes glazed over, nearly rolling back into his head as he stepped close enough that his feet nudged against hers. Her nails scraped the sides of his scalp as she slid her fingers through over and over. She pinched some of the strands, rubbing them between her fingers as if she expected the colour to come off.

He let her hands explore his freshly coloured hair, curiously tugging and pulling. His eyes slipped close at how soothing it felt and an appreciative groan escaped his throat.

“Guys, let’s—oh, ew. Am I interrupting something?”

Mark’s eyes snapped open and Heiran stepped back, pulling her hand out of his hair before looking over at the door where Jinyoung stood. 

“No.” Heiran cleared her throat. 

Jinyoung smirked at the deadpanned look on Mark’s face, “We still have a bunch of papers to get through. Come out when you’re done doing…whatever.”

Mark narrowed his eyes until Jinyoung shut the door behind him, then he turned to Heiran and leaned in close, “10 more minutes.”

“Of what?” She asked with a laugh, her finger trailing across the compass on his chest. 

He touched her waist, contemplating the idea of pressing himself against her. Seeing her in the basement had changed his brain chemistry, it was like his self-restraint had worn down to the stubs. 

“Mmm, of staring at each other? Of touching my hair? Of whatever you want?” He offered quietly. 

She shivered under his balmy stare, “Not exactly _whatever_ I want though, right?”

“Right.” He sighed bitterly. “Right.”

Heiran grinned, “You’re so soft for me.”

He glared and to anyone else, they’d be shaking but she just gripped his chin and tilted his head down to her, “I’m going to help the others. Hurry up or Jinyoung’s going to get fussy.”

\-----

Heiran left Mark’s room and wandered out to the living room where Jinyoung was sitting with Lucy trying to decipher a stack of documents. 

“Hey, do you have a minute?” Jaebum asked as he poked his head out of the kitchen. 

She went to the kitchen reluctantly, on edge, “What is it?”

“Here.”

She flipped through the papers Jaebum handed her, “Divorce papers?”

“Annulment papers.” Jaebum said quietly, his eyes refusing to meet hers. 

Even though the marriage was a sham and part of a grander ploy to get her back together with Jaebum, it felt a little bittersweet and a little nostalgic. Like they were breaking up for a second time even if they had never gotten back together. 

“Pen?” She asked awkwardly. 

He pulled the silver thin tip and handed it to her. She paused, glancing at the gift before setting the papers on the counter and signing on the dotted line. 

“I’m sorry for doing all of this to you. I got carried away. I stopped thinking about us and kept thinking about me.” He wanted to say more, to apologize individually for every single thing he had done wrong, but he wasn’t sure it would do anything at this point. 

Heiran didn’t want to hear apologies from him anymore. 

She handed the pages over and tried to give him a smile, “I think this door is closed.”

“Did I ever stand a chance?” He blurted.

She looked at her feet and frowned, “Maybe if things were different and you went about it differently but it probably wouldn’t have been a good idea.”

“I’ll always love you.” He said under his breath.

"I think a part of me will always love you too." She meant it. Jaebum was someone who she didn't think she could ever forgive but he was also someone who had once made her happiest when she felt her lowest. He gave her the confidence she didn't realize she lacked to face the world. And although he also gave her a truckload of insecurity after he left her, she'd be grateful for the good in their relationship. 

"Just not the part that wants to love me now." He didn't say it accusingly or to guilt-trip her, he instead meant it as understanding that their relationship was properly coming to a close now. And that he was speaking the truth of what she felt and that their relationship wouldn't ever be anything more. 

Before she could reply, Jinyoung’s gleeful voice cut her off, “Thank god you dyed your hair. Your roots were becoming hard to look at.”

They turned to Mark who shuffled out of his room, fully dressed and rolling his eyes. He glanced over at Jaebum and Heiran when Lucy ran up to him in awe of his new hair. “We have the same hair!”

Mark grinned down at her before letting her lead him to the couch so she could compare their hair colour. She draped her long hair over his skull, giggling when it blended with his, giving him the appearance of having long locks. 

Heiran felt her own lips curving up at the sound of Lucy’s laughter before automatically gravitating towards the couch, abandoning the conversation with Jaebum. He watched longingly as she sat next to Mark, her fingers grazing down the length of his spine.

This was his punishment, to watch her fall in love with another man, one that he had wronged. 

But he would make it up to her by making sure she’d live a happy life from here on out. 

It was the only thing he could offer her.

\-----

“This is a bad idea. This is such a bad, someone say something!” Heiran chanted as she watched Mark lace his shoes up. She had begun pacing which was stressing everyone out.

“It’s a bad idea.” Jinyoung affirmed. 

Her shoulders sagged in relief, “Thank you!”

“But it’s our only option.” 

Heiran shoved Jinyoung’s arm with a glare, “How? He literally has an entire gang wanting him dead.”

“We were worried about losing our advantage, Mark meeting with him won’t lose anything.” Jaebum reasoned. 

Her face was burning red in anger, “Um, he could lose his life.”

“I’ll be fine.” Mark finally spoke up, his eyes following Heiran carefully.

“Shut up.” Heiran barked, her hands trembling, “He could have all of GOT7 waiting for you. You think you’ll be fine against those odds? Why are you doing this?”

“We need something to go on because right now it’s looking bleak.” Mark said. They were scrambling and without direction, they’d end up making a mistake. 

“B—“

He reached out and touched her shoulder, staring hard into her eyes, “Heiran, I know what I’m doing. Don’t worry.”

Her lips turned down but she finally nodded weakly seeing how set he was. She wasn’t used to the feeling that whenever someone she cared about walked out the door with no guarantee that they’d come back alive. 

He turned to leave but she pulled him back, fisting his collar and pulling him close so that they were nose to nose. His eyes widened at the proximity, his gaze flitting around everywhere to avoid the sight of her lips. He realized at that moment, that no matter how much control he had, no matter how many people feared him, he was at her total and complete mercy.

“You come back safe.” She demanded. 

He closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against hers, wanting to close the gap and press their lips together sinking into her. She looked so sad and worried over him, he just wanted to ease all that pain away. 

But he just peeled his eyes open and fought against keening at the sight of her like a damn puppy, “I promise.” 

He needed to stop making promises.

She huffed but was satisfied enough to let go of him. Just as she stepped away, Lucy ran up to him, being awoken from her nap and immediately read the room. She might not have understood what was going on and why everyone seemed strained but she knew that no one wanted Mark to leave. And neither did she. 

Mark looked down at her when she hugged his legs and smiled. “What’s wrong, kid?”

“Are you coming back?” She asked, her eyes wide and watery.

He smiled and reached out to touch her cheek where crease lines from the blanket pressed into her skin, “Where else would I go?”

“Promise?” She pouted.

He crouched down to her and held out his pinky, “I promise, sunshine.”

“Okay.” She said cutely while rocking on her heels while wrapping her little finger around his. 

He smiled fondly at her before squishing her face with his hand, “Be good, little gremlin."

He stood and Jinyoung handed him the burner from earlier, “I’ll be tracking the phone so we’ll know where you are.”

Mark nodded and tucked the phone away before opening the door when Jaebum reached out and grabbed his arm, stopping him, “Don’t let him get inside your head. Ask questions, don’t answer them.”

Mark’s lips hitched, “Is that advice?”

“Yeah, for some reason I don’t want you to die or get played.” Jaebum deadpanned with a roll of his eyes.

“How long have you known me? You think I’d let either happen?”

Jaebum’s face softened a fraction, “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

Mark tilted his head with a grin before glancing at Heiran who was scowling in the corner. He moved to her and squeezed her hand, “Trust me, duchess. I’m good at this.”

\-----

They met in an empty ally way, Mark had used a burner phone that Jinyoung supplied him and dictated the time and place for the meeting and clear instruction.

_Come alone. Don’t try to kill me._

He knew that he’d listen, not out of the kindness of his heart but because it would intrigue him, Mark asking to meet up with someone who wanted him dead. He wanted to know what had to say if he was willing to risk his life for it.

But that meant he had to be careful. The wrong move and he wouldn’t be leaving here alive. 

“I can’t guarantee that people aren’t tracking you down and zeroing in on your location as we speak. So you should make it quick.” His Boss said quickly.

Mark watched his face, one that used to know so well, now looked so unfamiliar. He couldn’t read his eyes like he used to, but maybe he never did, “I’m surprised you haven’t shot me already.”

He shrugged carelessly, “I don’t get my own hands dirty, you know that.”

“Yeah, I do know that, unfortunately.” Mark said with a scowl. 

His Boss chuckled knowingly, “So, what do you want? For me to call off the army? Too late.”

“No. I want answers. If GOT7 is hunting me, I deserve to know the truth before I die.” Mark stood firmly like his body was the wall he needed his mind to be.

His Boss raised a brow inquisitively and leaned against the brick wall, “You almost sound like you’re giving up. It’s not a good look on you. But fine. What do you want to know?”

“Why trafficking when you knew what that would mean to me?” Mark asked the question void of any emotion, he didn’t want to show him how much this had affected him. He had already lived through his pain, now he was angry and he wasn’t going to let that man get any more satisfaction out of his pain.

He ran his tongue over his teeth, “I held out all these years because I knew what it meant to you, but the money and power that we could get from trafficking were too good to pass up. The only way we could compete with gangs like DS would be to diversify.”

“Diversify? We aren’t a fucking multi-national corporation. You didn’t need to do this. There were other ways.” Mark spat out venomously.

His Boss liked his tongue and pushed himself off the wall, “No. There wasn’t. Don’t be childish, you don’t know what it takes to build an empire as big as GOT7. Grow up, Mark. That happened to you like 20 years ago, stop hiding behind your trauma. Too much time has passed for you to still be hung up on what happened to you.”

The rage building inside Mark was incomparable. He hadn’t realized his boss was so dismissive about a part of his life that sent him spiralling into the underworld. “Is that why you helped fake it all?”

His brow twitched, he had caught him off-guard, “How did you find out?”

“It was pretty obvious.” Mark stated plainly.

He rubbed his chin, “I knew we couldn’t spend forever using Heiran, she’d get hard to control. We needed to get her replaced but we couldn’t risk her trying to go to the cops. This was our best chance.”

“If there was never any threat, why did you assign me to her and make me believe she was in danger?” Mark fisted his hands, stopping himself from indulging in how easy it would be to swing into his chin.

He reached into his coat and Mark stiffened but he only pulled out a cigarette and a lighter, “Because I knew Jaebum was her ex. And the three of you in a room together have more history than a museum.”

Mark watched the flame that ignited the end of his cigarette, “Is that—is that why you kept me out of the loop and started pushing me out?”

“I wanted to throw Jaebum off, he was already blinded by Heiran, with you it only made him more irrational. I didn’t need him thinking he ran things.” He said while blowing out a long stream of smoke, like a dragon. 

But Heiran was the dragon in the Seo family.

“Is that the only reason why you even kept me around?” He ground out.

He took a long pull and spoke through the smoke, “I kept you around because you were good at your job. Then my plan backfired because you started getting soft. You cared about her more than GOT7, which is why we’re here. I started pushing you out because I couldn’t trust you to work in GOT7’s best interests if it meant hurting her. You turned so weak. You became a liability to our plan.”

“I can’t believe you did this to me.” The smell of tobacco was making his head pound.

“Mark, I treated you like you were my son. I raised you and supported you. _You’re_ the one that betrayed us.”

“Well, I know how you treat your children so that’s not a compliment.” Mark snapped back angrily.

His jaw tensed before scoffing, “Are you done with your questions? I’m sure you’re minutes away from your death sentence.”

“What’s the end game? You think you can keep using her old company now that Jackson’s dead? There’s too much heat.” Mark pushed on.

He shrugged like it wasn't a big deal, “We’ll send someone else in his place.”

Mark played dumb, “How? You made me kill the VP?”

He got cocky, he could tell in how his body relaxed, “What makes you think that he’s our only connection?”

Clearly, he meant the CEO but he had no idea what Mark knew, “The police know too much. They know GOT7 is involved. You’ll never get away with it.”

He laughed condescendingly, “Wake up, Mark. The cops are idiots. They have a body of a GOT7 member courtesy of you. Bodies can’t snitch. They have nothing on us.” 

“Who are you going to get to kill your other connection once your new guy goes in? Who’s gonna do your dirty work now?” Mark taunted. There was no one really quite as blindly loyal as him.

“You’re as easily replaceable as Heiran was, son. I have people.” He said lightly. 

Mark paused, his eyes widening. Someone as GOT7 was the new hired hand? But wh—his stomach sank, “Yeonhee?”

“You’ve left too many people scorned.” He said vaguely. 

Mark narrowed his eyes, for a man who spent months leaving him out of the loop he seemed too eager to share, “Why are you being so forthcoming?”

“I could tell you our entire plan and it wouldn’t help you at all because you’ll never find enough proof.” He glanced at his watch before straightening up, “That’s it for me.”

“Wait, I’m not done.”

“Too bad cause I am. You got your freebie, I’m letting you walk out of here alive even though it doesn’t benefit me at all. Consider it a parting gift for old times sake.” He turned and waved two fingers at him, “Good luck staying alive and you won’t be able to keep Heiran hidden for too long.”

He turned with a smirk, “She is my daughter after all.”

When his eyes flitted over Mark’s shoulder, he registered the sound of someone behind him. He turned and tensed when Wonpil, a member of Day6 grinned menacingly at him. He had a knife gripped tightly in his hand and stood ready to fight.

Mark glanced over his shoulder, his ex-Boss was long gone and he was, once again, left alone to fend for himself.

\-----

The downside of being the most talented member of your gang is that you end up training the people under you. 

Which made fighting them a lot trickier, when you taught them everything you know. 

Wonpil was a prime example of that.

“Bring it on, traitor.” Wonpil taunted with a smirk.

Mark braced himself when Wonpil charged at him. He fended off his attacks with his arms, blocking the tip of his knife whenever it got close. “Give up.’

Wonpil caught his breath with a laugh, “Fuck you, man. I’ve seen you dragging Jae around and now you’re flipping on us? I’m gonna carve you up.”

“I’m the reason you’re here.” Mark growled, aiming a kick at Wonpil’s knee. 

He glared at him, “Things are changing Mark. I’m going to get that bounty on you and I’ll be the legend that took down the great Mark Tuan. It’s going to be a good day.”

Mark swung his fist, the sound of Wonpil’s nose crunching filling the alley. He stumbled back with a groan. Mark smirked, “Maybe not _that_ good.”

Anger flushed in Wonpil’s eyes and he ran at him while wielding two blades. Mark leaned away as he walked backwards from him. He dodged him swiftly, but he knew he was walking towards a dead end. He couldn’t fight back fast enough, Wonpil was fuelled on something Mark couldn’t compete with. Each one of Wonpil’s swings were getting closer and closer to him. 

When his back hit the wall Wonpil grabbed his throat and slammed him against the brick. Wonpil leaned close and tilted his head, “You’re not reaching for your gun. I know it’s there.”

Mark just gave Wonpil a long dark look. 

He made a promise that he wasn’t going to kill recklessly. 

If he reached for his gun, he could end Wonpil in seconds. 

But he didn’t have it in himself to do it.

“You gonna kill me now?” Mark asked with a bitter growl. 

Wonpil grinned, “I’ve been waiting a long time to do it.”

He flipped his knife in his hand and wound his hand back but before he could swing it down, an arm hooked around Wonpil’s neck and incapacitated him. Mark’s eyes widened as Wonpil sputtered, his arms flailing wildly before falling limp. 

Wonpil’s body dropped to the ground in a meek pile. Mark blinked in shock, not quite sure what had happened when another voice spoke up. 

“Don’t worry, he’s not dead. He’ll wake up soon.”

Mark’s mouth hung open as he stared at Jaebum who was standing in front of him, trying to catch his breath. Mark looked back down at Wonpil’s body, before gaping at Jaebum, “What are you doing here?”

“Saving your ass. Were you just going to let him shiv you to death?” Jaebum asked with a scowl.

Mark still looked confused as Jaebum kicked at Wonpil’s shoe to make sure he was unconscious, “Did you follow me out here?”

“You were meeting with someone willing to shell out a mil for your death. Yeah, I followed you out here. And you’re lucky I did.” He grumbled while propping Wonpil’s body up against the wall.

Mark stepped over Wonpil’s legs and stood next to Jaebum. The truth was that he was seconds away from dying if it wasn’t for Jaebum. And he wasn’t entirely sure how he felt about that. The man who he’d never trust had rescued him. 

“Thanks.” Mark said softly. He meant it. It would’ve been so easy for Jaebum to leave him to his own devices knowing that if he was killed, it wouldn’t be his fault. But he came out and saved him. 

Jaebum looked over at him and felt his throat tighten. It was one of the few rare moments when they weren’t at each other’s necks and suddenly Mark looked 12 and he felt 11 when the sight of Mark’s face used to bring him a sense of safety where the world felt scary. He may have thrown that safety away for a better shot but that sensation crept back into his chest. 

“Yeah, sure. No problem.” Jaebum said quietly, averting his eyes to the floor. “We should…um…we should get going before he wakes up.”

Mark nodded and followed behind him as they walked to Jaebum’s car. He looked over at Mark, eyeing the distant look in his eye and the distracted silence that he carried with him. 

“You seem…off. Did your Boss say something weird?” Jaebum asked.

Mark’s brows were furrowed as he thought to himself. He must’ve spoken them out loud without realizing it, “I think something’s wrong with me.”

“Did you get hurt?” Jaebum blurted, his eyes trailing over Mark’s body to see if the knife had gotten anywhere near him. 

“No, not like that…I couldn’t stop thinking about her.” Mark felt his feet move in slow motion like he was wading through a sea of molasses. 

Jaebum swallowed the lump in his throat and tried to pretend to not be weirded out by all of it, “Heiran?”

“It pissed me off, no matter how hard I tried to fill my mind with white noise and focus, I kept thinking about her, about how angry she’d be if I died there and how I really didn’t want to fucking disappoint her.” Mark said while running a hand through his hair.

They neared Jaebum’s car, “Well I think—“

“Shit.” Mark muttered to himself while shaking his head.

Jaebum shot him a dirty look, “Not like I was going to say something insightful or anything but whatever. What?”

“When he held those knives at me, I really had a moment where I thought _shit I wished I kissed her before I die.”_ Mark said softly, almost like a whisper.

“God, it annoys me so much to hear you talk.” Jaebum hissed.

Mark narrowed his eyes, ready to turn defensive, “You’re the one who asked.”

“No, it annoys me hearing you say shit like that but you’re too much of a coward to just do something about it.” Jaebum snapped in exasperation. 

Mark leaned against Jaebum’s car and hung his head, “I can’t. You know better than anyone how much is riding on a relationship with her.”

Jaebum shoved Mark off of his car and leaned down to inspect the smudges on the windows, “She doesn’t want you to be perfect. She just doesn’t want you to play her like I did. Just try. Don’t give up. Everything else will work out once you both really know what you mean to each other.”

“Yeah, maybe you’re right.” Mark said it to end the conversation sooner.

Jaebum straightened up and looked over at Mark who looked very clearly at war with himself. He let the silence hang over him before clearing his throat, “I never said sorry.”

“For what?” Mark asked, jerking his head up. 

Jaebum ran his fingers through his long hair and rubbed the back of his neck, “I know that what we went through and what I did to you and what DS did to us can’t be fixed with a sorry but I think I need to say it and you need to hear it. So I’m sorry for everything I did to you ever since we were kids.”

Mark stared at him with a small smile, “You’re being soft. It’s atrocious. Never do it again. Try stabbing me again, make things normal.”

“Shut the fuck up.” He snarked, but a second later, his own smile crept over his face. He wasn’t used to a heartfelt conversation with Mark, “You should call Heiran, make sure she knows you’re alive.”

Mark glanced at Jaebum with a surprised look before reaching for his phone. “Right. Yeah.”

Jaebum smirked, “That’s going to be your life now. You’ll have other people worried about you and you’re going to have to check in with them. No more of that lone wolf act."

A shadow crossed over Mark’s face for a second and then it was gone. It was a bittersweet feeling because all he could think about was how a future with Heiran always seemed unrealistic to him. 

It reminded him that whatever moment or norm that was forming between him and Heiran, like calling to check in, would be short-lived. Pushing those thoughts out of his mind, he took out his phone and called Heiran who picked up on the first ring.

“Mark? What’s wrong? Are you okay?” Her voice came out in a panicked rush like she had been waiting by her phone for his call.

It was like his heartfelt human after having to face someone so cold, “Hey duchess, I’m okay. I’m heading back soon.”

“Thank god.” The sound of the relief in her voice transferred to him and for once, the numbness of barely making it out of somewhere alive was gone. He was glad to be alive and to hear her voice.

“If it wasn’t for Jaebum, we’d be having a different conversation.” He admitted.

She sounded surprised, “He helped you? He was there?”

“Yeah, sorta saved my ass a little.” He said with a little smile.

Jaebum snorted in the distance. 

She didn’t bother herself with the details, “Good, as long as you’re okay. So you’re done?”

“Yeah I am.” His eyes grew a little unfocused as he stared off into the street. 

“Then come home.” She ordered. He could almost hear her pouting.

He hummed, “We’re leaving now.”

“I’m going to hug you so hard when you get here.” She said through gritted teeth. 

“Me too! Me too!” Lucy called out in the background.

He laughed and slipped his hand into his pocket, “Were you that worried?”

“Mark, I—“ She trailed off with a sigh as she bit back whatever she was going to say. Silence filled the line but he felt so comfortable like he could feel her arms around him. 

“I know, baobei.” He said softly. 

“Hug.” She said bluntly before hanging up. 

Mark smiled as he put his phone away and got into the car with Jaebum who was watching him in awe. This was a side of Mark he never thought he would see. One with warm, shy smiles and gentle calming words. 

In that moment Mark wasn’t weighed down with anger or resentment, he wasn’t carrying the dirt on his hands or the trauma on his back. He seemed happy and whole just talking to Heiran.

Jaebum wondered when he started to have a conscience because he used to want to fight tooth and nail to win Heiran over, but in that moment, after everything he had done to Mark, he wanted him to be happy. 

He owed it to him. 

\-----

Yugyeom stood in the middle of Heiran’s house with his heart racing and his hands shaking. 

A bunch of her stuff was gone. 

Lucy’s too. 

The minute they found out about Jackson Wang and his ties to GOT7, he rushed to check on Heiran. He had no idea if she was in any danger but it didn’t seem like a coincidence that her old job was filled in by a gangster. He didn't care that there was a bigger investigation being launched into her company or that they had the corpse of a GOT7 member in their custody. He didn't give a fuck about any of it. All he cared about was his best friend, the only consistent person in his life vanishing without a trace. 

Her cars were still in the driveway but no one was inside. 

He tried her cellphone number a dozen times and it went straight to voicemail too. He knew something wasn’t right but standing in her abandoned house made him sick to his stomach. She would never up and leave without telling him. 

His mind raced as he tried to come up with an answer when he remembered Mark. Getting in his car, he drove to Mark’s apartment hoping that she had been staying over at his place for some reason. 

But when he stood in front of his door and noticed the pile of mail sitting on his welcome mat and no answer when he rang the doorbell the twist in his gut grew. From what he knew, Mark went wherever Heiran went, so both of them being gone filled him with fear.

What if something happened?

He tried to think back to the last time he had spoken to her, it had to have been days. He didn’t even know how long she’d been gone for.

He hated the gnawing feeling in his chest, the one that rang alarm bells in his ears. Clearly, he was missing something because none of this was a fluke, everything from Jackson to her company to GOT7 was connected. All this time he had his assumptions and hypotheses but it was bigger than he could've ever imagined with Heiran potentially involved. 

And now, his best friend and her daughter might be in danger and there was nothing he could do about it.

He was about to turn away when he noticed one of the envelopes sitting on top of the pile of Mark's mail. There was no address, not Mark's or the return address. It just had his name in simple black writing. Someone must've delivered this to him in person and the fact that it was on top of the stack, it was put there recently. 

Yugyeom picked up the envelope and tore it open and read the sentence written inside five times before his stomach dropped.

_Your Duchess is lying to you._

_-GOT7_


	33. Thirtythird

Heiran always figured parenting would be hard.

Lucy was laying in bed, curled up under a thin blanket and Heiran was seated on the floor next to her, watching the moonlight play off her face. 

She looked so much like her father. 

It was a running joke that she looked more like her mother than her father and although Heiran could clearly see the resemblance of both, she always found the father’s features stood out more. She could see it in her ears, her mouth and her expressive eyes. 

And she could most definitely see it in her personality. Her outgoing cheeriness, the dry humour that sometimes seemed beyond her age, the ability to see the silver lining no matter what. It was all there. 

Heiran felt tears well up as she rested her chin on the edge of the mattress. She missed him so much and if her mind was silent for long enough, she could feel the emptiness inside. She knew she was doing it all wrong and how disappointed he’d be if he knew what Lucy was being put through. She wasn’t raising her right, she wasn’t raising Lucy the way she was supposed to be raising her. She wasn't giving her the life she deserved. 

She pressed her forehead against the bed and squeezed her eyes shut. Lucy had become withdrawn ever since they got to the safehouse. Sometimes she’d play around with the guys but when they had to work, she’d fall silent. She’d been sleeping more than she used to. Was she depressed? Traumatized? Heiran’s heart clenched at the thought. How could she help her?

Heiran didn’t hear the door open or the footsteps pad in until she felt someone crouch behind her. She stayed where she was when arms curled around her and began lifting her up. She flinched and Mark swore quietly under his breath before setting her back on the floor.

“Sorry.” He whispered, “I thought you fell asleep down here.”

She shook her head and stood with him but he was quick to cup her face and turn it to him, tilting it so that the light bleeding through the crack in the door washed over her face, “Duchess?”

When she met his eyes, it was like something inside of her cracked and a feeling of hopelessness washed over her. Her lip quivered and he pulled her to him as she silently cried against his shoulder.

Glancing at Lucy who was still asleep, he carefully walked backwards with Heiran leaning against him until they were safely in his room. She pulled away and wiped her face, “I’m just a little overwhelmed.”

“I get that.” He said softly, leading her back into his arms, the place where he liked her best and swayed her gently, “But are you sure that’s all it was about?”

She rested her head against his chest, her eyes growing heavy with the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. She fisted the back of his shirt like he could physically ground her the way he emotionally grounded her, “What do you mean?”

“Is this…about Lucy’s dad?” 

Heiran stiffened in his arms and pushed him away before staring into his eyes. It was uncanny how he managed to know exactly what was plaguing her even though it was something he knew nothing about. She wasn’t used to someone being so attuned to her emotions and needs especially after being seen as nothing but a tool by so many other people, “Excuse me?”

He immediately felt regret as he dropped his arms and put space between them. He wished he could staple his mouth shut, “I’m sorry, I just found that box of your stuff and Lucy was looking at a picture of him so I…I um, I don’t know I g—“

“It’s okay.” She interrupted before moving to the kitchen to open the cabinets and looked around frantically, “Ugh, there’s no tea here.”

“I think we have some coffee.” Mark offered as he followed her out. 

She shut the doors and huffed, “No, it’ll just make me anxious and jittery.”

“Do you want to talk about it…or him?” He hated how his voice was filled with doubt and insecurity but he didn’t know how to approach this topic with Heiran. Lucy’s father had always been the elephant in the room that they dared not to ever address. It was an unspoken rule.

Her eyes widened and she chewed on her lips worriedly before scratching the back of her neck, “I don’t know.”

“What is he like?” Mark asked, hoping the softball question would ease her into sharing. 

Heiran’s eyes quickly became wistful, weighted with so much emotion and it made Mark’s gut twist. It was like she could see the man in front of her, “Every good quality of Lucy’s is his. He’s one of the best people I’ve ever met.”

“Why isn’t he around?” Mark asked quietly. 

Heiran’s face fell and she looked away. His throat swelled at the distress on her face and he knew he pushed too much. But the look of absolute love on her face from before was seared into his mind.

“You and Jaebum should go out and get some fresh air.” He said while reaching out and brushing her hair back, “Being stuck inside all the time might be stressing you out.”

She frowned, “Jaebum?”

“Me and Jinyoung can’t risk going out and to everyone else, you’re still married.” He hated the memory, even though her ring was tossed somewhere in the house. 

Her eyes darted around his face before she frowned, “Is this because I don’t want to talk about Lucy’s dad?”

“What?! No!” Mark exclaimed, “I’m not punishing you. I just think that being cooped up here is getting to you. Duchess, you know I’m not going to give you a hard time just because you’re not ready to share.” He cupped her jaw and thumbed along the bone soothingly. 

She sighed guilty and sunk into his touch a little, “Yeah, I know, I’m sorry. I just feel…bleh.”

“You know I’ll be here for you, right? Even when it feels like I’m not, I’ll always be on your side.” He whispered, knocking their heads together.

Her eyes glistened and she looked away, her breath catching at the mention of a day that may come where it would feel like he wasn’t with her, “I know. And maybe you’re right, I need to get some fresh air and clear my head. Is it safe?”

“As safe as it can be, but Jaebum will be good to have by your side. He’s proven to be…useful.” He said with a snort. 

Some of the heaviness lifted off of her as she smiled at him, “I feel safest with you. Does that sound stupid?”

“No.” He murmured, running the back of his fingers against her cheek, he was so hopelessly in love with her, it sort of snuck up on him. But it wasn't a crashing realization, it was a slow, calming build that consumed him in the time that he knew her. He woke up one day and knew he loved her, and he knew he had loved her for a long time now.

He hadn’t been prepared to find the other half of his heart in her when he was assigned to look after his Boss’s estranged daughter. He was never a man that made room in his heart for others, but as it turned out, Heiran and Lucy fit inside the small space too perfectly, “It’s music to my ears, really.”

She hummed happily at his touch, it always brought her feet to the ground and made her feel balanced. Despite Heiran’s warmed eyes, Mark looked a bit sadder, his fingers brushing her lips almost longingly, “But maybe it is a little stupid to feel safe with a hunted man.” 

\-----

“God, has the air always smelled this crisp?” Heiran sang as she took a deep breath. 

Jaebum chuckled, watching the small skip in her step as they walked down the sidewalk, baseball caps and face masks covering most of their faces up. “It’s only been a few weeks.”

“Well, it feels a lot longer.” She said quietly, “I think I felt this way ever since my dad showed up at my office.”

Jaebum fell silent and they continued down the street, the sidewalks and roads glossy with rain from earlier. When Mark asked him to accompany Heiran for a walk, he thought he was being tricked. Even though there was a certain level of awkwardness around them, he appreciated how comfortably they could talk to each other. He wasn’t sure he’d ever have a role in her life anymore, but these simple moments had him missing her as a friend. 

“Mark asked me about Lucy’s dad today.” Heiran quietly admitted, breaking the box of silence.

Jaebum raised his brow, he was surprised Mark had the guts to bring it up, “What did he say?”

“He just asked me if I wanted to talk about him.” She tucked her hands into her sweater pockets and raised her shoulders to her ears. 

He glanced at her from the side of his eyes, “And did you?”

“I did but not much. I wanted to but I think the moment wasn’t right.” She said.

He nodded and hummed, “Do you think he’d take it well?”

“I mean…why wouldn’t he?” She posited with a frown.

“Because you waited so long to tell him.”

She looked at her feet before shaking her head, “He isn’t like that.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right.” He admitted, Mark was never someone to be insecure or jealous.

She pursed her lips in thought before looking over at him, “Why do you think he asked me about it?”

“He saw his photo, didn’t he tell you?” He asked. 

She nodded but still seemed unsure, “Yeah but I didn’t get why he brought it up. He never really asked me about Lucy’s dad before.”

“When we were dating, I was always curious because I wanted to know who he is and what his relationship was to you or if he’d still be a part of your life. Even with everything that’s been going on, I’m sure Mark has similar questions.” He saw the way she chewed on her lip anxiously and sighed, “You and Mark aren’t really dating, but you’re basically dating. It’s natural for him to be curious when he’s trying to figure where he stands with you and Lucy.”

She sighed, “You’re right. And I want to tell him, I just want to do it properly. I don’t want him to feel like I don’t trust him. It’s just a big step and we don’t even know if there’s a future with us.”

“Oh, there will definitely be a future with you two.” He said with a snort. 

She peered up at him, “How are you so sure?”

“I’d bet my entire empire that Mark loves you, like is _actually_ in love with you. And Mark doesn’t treat those feelings lightly. You know him, he’s loyal as hell. He doesn’t mess around. Him loving someone is heavy shit and he won’t just throw that away. He’s going to see this through.” He had never been more sure about anything in his life.

She didn’t look entirely convinced, “But he’s the one that’s putting distance between us.”

“That should be your proof, he’s not risking ruining things with you. He’s being smart and careful instead of rushing into things only for it to not work out a month later. It'd be so easy for him to just do what he wants. But he's being patient.” Jaebum said. “The real question is how do you feel about him?”

She swallowed down tears she could feel building, “I feel right when I’m with him. Like I’m the most honest version of myself with him. I feel like things will be okay despite how much they’re _not_ okay. That’s how I feel about him. At least as of right now.”

He looked at her and the way she had fallen deep inside her own mind and felt guilt seep deep into his bones, “I’m sorry.”

“For?” She asked, blinking up at him. 

He swallowed the lump in his throat. he'd been doing a lot of apologizing lately, “For hurting you so much that you’ve stopped yourself from falling in love with someone else to protect yourself.”

“Do you think that’s what I’m feeling? Love?” She couldn’t shake how strange it was asking her ex a question like that. Like they were friends with a platonic history. 

But Jaebum just grinned up at the night sky, “No, I’m pretty sure it’s something more than love. There just isn’t a word for it yet.”

“You seem different, Jae.” She whispered. 

His smile faded but not into sadness, just into calmness, “I feel different too. Lighter. Like I can see things better, clearer. Maybe letting you go also meant letting go of feelings that were dragging me down. Desperate, ugly feelings that made me so careless for you that I didn’t even see what I was _really_ doing to you. My tunnel vision hurt so many people. But I'm opening my eyes wider now.”

“Balance is restored.” She said softly. 

He hummed, melancholic, he wondered if this was part of the reason Mark wanted them out of the safehouse together, to get proper closure. Not rushed and quiet in the corner of the kitchen where they’d get interrupted, but a proper conversation. 

One that tied everything up and left nothing unsaid. They could finally close this chapter and leave it in the past. They knew what they felt, they knew that things were so complicated and awful that maybe not everything was fixed or forgiven but at least it was clear where they stood. 

They weren’t friends, she wasn’t going to be inviting him out to brunch or her wedding but there was serenity between them. He’d always love her and he was happy enough with that.

“Yeah, it is.” He said. 

She fell silent as he led them into an empty coffee shop. Heiran was pulled from her thoughts as she looked around to take in the little shop as her eyes landed on the only other customer. 

“Jaebum.” She whispered, her hand trembling as she reached out to grab his arm. 

His eyes darted to hers and he followed her gaze to the man standing off to the side, waiting for his drink order. Jaebum took a sharp breath just as her former CEO looked over and did a double-take. 

“Oh Heiran, how are you?”

She was immobile while she took in his jovial smile. It discomforted her that even while knowing what she did about him, his smile seemed normal and honest. He was so two-faced.

Jaebum pinched her lower back and she snapped out of her daze and tried to seem normal, “G-Good, sir. Good. Getting coffee so late?”

He chuckled as a barista set his cup down, “Yes, burning the midnight oil. How’s the job hunt going?”

“Uh—slow, I’ve just had so many things going on recently.”

“Of course, priorities are important. Well, I should be off. Despite everything that’s happened, it’s good to see you.”

Something inside Heiran snapped at his words. 

He sounded like what had happened with her career and her position with his company wasn’t entirely his fault. 

She followed him with her eyes and then words tumbled out before she could stop herself, “Was it worth it?”

He paused and looked at her like he wasn’t sure if he had heard her correctly, “Pardon?” 

“Selling your soul to the highest bidder, bringing Jackson on only for him to die and ruin your entire company because now your company is associated with a major criminal organization and is being investigated.” Her voice came out in an inhuman growl that somehow managed to sound both soulless and full of unadulterated anger.

He paused for a second, taken aback by her rage before he smiled calmly, “I have no idea what you’re talking about but in any case, every decision I make is always worth it. That’s what makes me such a successful businessman. You would know if you had what it takes."

She noticed how he tensed and the warm, fatherly smile morphed into a glare. Those were his real colours and she was like a dog with a bone. “Did you know that you got the bad end of the deal? For a few small cheques, you practically gave up your multimillion-dollar business. Not much of a businessman.”

He gave her a bewildered look, “What are you talking about? No, I didn’t.”

Her eyes trailed over his shoulder and he turned to see her looking at the TV mounted on the wall with graphics displaying a downward trend on a graph, “Your stocks have crashed now that everyone sees the cops are knocking on your door.”

“You think this is my only source of income? I have more lucrative streams.” He barked.

It made her sick that he was treating something as awful as human trafficking as a source of income and not what it really was. 

A crime against humanity. 

“More lucrative or more criminal.” She stepped closer to him like she was circling her prey. 

She knew that Jaebum was staying silent, hoping his presence would go unnoticed but she could see his hand drifting to his waist where he kept his gun in case things went wrong.”

“What can I say? I like diversifying.” He gritted out, “I like looking into new ventures.”

She narrowed her eyes at him, “If you for a second think my father is a loyal man, you’re a bigger fool than I am.”

“What do you mean?” His face was blank of emotion except for the little crease in his brow, giving away his confusion.

“He’s setting you up. He doesn’t like loose ends. You’re an outsider who knows too much.” She said slyly.

He scoffed, ”You think he’s dumb enough to kill someone as high profile as me?”

“No, I think he’s smart enough to wait until the perfect moment to throw you under the bus so all the trafficking charges fall on you when things go sideways. He’s playing you. Because he has more dirt on you than you have on him.” She growled out.

“Excuse me?“

She was in his face now, egging him on, wanting to push him until he was on the edge, ”It’ll be your word against leaked audio and video that he surely has of your transactions with him that you didn’t realize he was recording.”

His face was flushed red at the suppressed rage and she just smirked and waited for him to explode. She knew that all men were the same, meaning he wasn’t going to last long under the condescension of a woman. 

And like clockwork, his anger got the best of him.

“I have more proof than just my word.” He blurted angrily. 

Bingo.

The sparkle in her eye enraged him as he realized his mistake and the accidental slip-up. His lip curled up into a growl, “Now I know why your father never loved you and just kept you alive long enough to use you. I always thought your father was just some narcissistic sociopath that was willing to ruin his own blood for personal gain. But maybe he was onto something. He should’ve gotten you killed, but hey, maybe there’s still time.”

“I think that’s enough.” Jaebum said darkly, finally stepping in between the CEO and Heiran before things got violent, “You should take your coffee and leave.”

\-----

The doors to her Boss’s open slammed open and Yeonhee jumped, whipping her gun out and pointing it at the intruder on instinct. Her eyes widened when the CEO of Heiran’s old company came charging in. She had met him a few times as Yuna but he probably didn’t pay enough attention to her then to recognize that she was the one aiming a gun at him. 

“Back off.” She ordered. 

Her Boss held his hand out to stop her and she hesitated before tucking her gun away. The CEO’s face was beet red, “I don’t know what you think you’re playing at but I won’t let you take me down!”

She looked over at her Boss but he seemed unfazed, his fingers laced together under his chin, “What brought this on?”

“You used my company and I let you do whatever I want and now the cops are circling, asking me questions about Jackson Wang that I don’t know how to answer. My stocks are plummeting and you’re nowhere to be found. When we agreed to work together we were supposed to both benefit from this equally, but it’s starting to feel like you’re getting everything you want out of it and I’m about to pay for it.”

“You always knew the cops would be circling. It’s not my responsibility to get them off your back. I already got my team to get rid of that auditor. You’ve used up your extra favours with me. And don’t act like I’m the only one getting something out of this. It’s your humans that I’m trafficking. You supply the inventory and I’m moving it. You’ll get your cut once the transactions are complete.” He replied calmly.

He glared, panting heavily, “You think you have the upper hand, implicating me in everything and leaving your hands clean. Let me make it clear that I have dirt on you too and the cops want you more than they want me. I could ruin you.”

“Not without ruining yourself too.” He fired back, “What are you going to tell the cops when you give them whatever you have on me? That you’ve been working with me for years? That you’ve engaged in human trafficking? That your company was a front for criminal activity? Good luck.” 

The CEO’s face grew flushed before he huffed, “Whatever, you better think twice before you try playing me because I’m not some chump, you’re not the only one with cards up their sleeve. You wanted to work with me because I was powerful and you wanted to use that power, but that means that if you wrong me, I can make your life miserable.” 

He raised his brow and smirked, “Are you done?”

The CEO snarled before storming out of his office. Once he was gone, her Boss’s brows furrowed as he leaned his elbows on the table, deep in thought. Then he glanced over his shoulder at her, “Did you find anything?”

“No, sir. We’ve swept his office, his home and went through all of Heiran’s work documents. There’s nothing there that could involve GOT7.” She stated. 

He ran his tongue over his teeth, “That’s not possible. He has something on me or he wouldn’t be in here kicking up a fuss. You need to find it.”

“I can try but we’ve looked everywhere. I think he’s bluffing.” She said. 

He shook his head before standing, “No, he has something and I want to know what it is. And you better find it if you don’t want to end up like Mark.” 

She flinched but nodded, “What are you going to do about Mark, anyways?”

“Toss a grenade.” 

\-----

Jinyoung stared at his computer screen for the 10th time that hour, refreshing the page on his laptop hoping that a new phone call or text would appear. He had ditched his phone at his apartment but he set up a program so he’d be able to track any activity he missed. 

He tried distracting himself and not taking it too personally but he'd gone off the grid for weeks and he didn’t have a single call or text from Yeonhee. He thought she’d be worried about where he’d gone or even check on him. The only things on his phone records were spam messages. Yeonhee didn’t want to check in on him to see how he was holding up since his best friend had turned on the gang and had a bounty on him, she didn’t reach out to see if he was even alive. 

Part of his wallowing came from the realization that she didn’t care about him nearly as much he cared about her. Normally he’d be used to that type of unbalanced relationship of giving more than he was taking but recently he thought things were changing between them. He thought she was letting go of Mark and was getting used to spending more time with him as more than just colleagues. 

But he must’ve been wrong because she was probably so consumed with finding Mark and winning the bounty that he didn’t cross her mind. Mark had mentioned to him that he thought the Boss had recruited Yeonhee to take over as his right hand, Jinyoung refused to believe she’d do it but now it was looking like Mark had been right.

The harsh reality was that she was probably working against him to take them down. He recognized that no matter how much he liked her and no matter how much he thought that she was starting to like him back, she’d never truly let go of Mark. 

He was pretty sure the reason she was working with the Boss was because she wanted to get revenge on Mark and Heiran, even if means hurting all of them. All the progress they made, had she really been so willing to throw it away just to get back at Mark?

“Do you want anything to drink?

“No, I’m okay.”

He lifted his head and looked over towards the kitchen where Mark and Heiran were standing, she was cutting up a bowl of fruit for Lucy and he was making himself some coffee. Despite the few intimate moments he’d accidentally walk in on, the two of them were good at acting like they were just two random people sharing a house together. 

But Jinyoung could see it in the way they moved around each other like they were in harmony and completely in tune with the other person. And he’d see the way Mark’s hands would slow as he stirred his drink when his eyes would inevitably fall on her, watching the back of her head like she was made of gold and velvet. He always looked like he was thinking of touching her before stopping himself.

Jinyoung never thought he’d see the day that Mark would look so lovestruck but here they were. He wished he could have that. To have the silent shared looks, to know someone’s body language so well that you can orbit around them and know what they’re feeling. He wanted that with Yeonhee. He wanted to stop clashing and start moving with each other. And he thought that they were going in that direction, but he was too hopeful. 

“Hey, how’s it going?” Heiran asked as she sat next to him. He blinked at the plate of apples she set down in front of him. He smiled slightly, he could see why Mark loved her so much. Caring for other people just came naturally to her. 

He closed the application and opened up the file with the CEO’s documents. “Pretty good. I’m making some progress. Where’s Jaebum and Lucy?”

“Jaebum is showing his face around his headquarters so people don’t get suspicious and Lucy’s asleep.” Mark informed as he sat across from them. “You said you’re making progress?”

“Yeah, based on the financial documents, it looks like your dad came in contact with your CEO once you started working there.” He showed them his screen.

Heiran frowned and inched closer, “How do you know?”

“Right before you got hired, there was a hundred thousand dollar deposit to his account. There’s never been a deposit of an amount that large before.” He said while highlighting the number.

Heiran stared at the number, wondering if that was how much her freedom cost, “But all that proves is that maybe he’s taken bribes. We still have no connection to GOT7. They’ve hidden the trafficking proof too well.”

“It’s because they’re doing everything around you. We can’t prove the money transactions have to do with GOT7 without implicating you as the daughter of the leader of GOT7.” Mark said glumly. “And the minute we implicate you there’s no way to prove that you aren’t involved with other GOT7 activities. Everything is in your name.”

She massaged her temples and Jinyoung saw the way Mark watched her anxiously his eyes searching her face worriedly, “So you’re saying we need to find a way to connect my old Boss with my dad without involving me?”

“Looks that way.” Jinyoung muttered. 

Mark sighed and set his mug down, “It’s the trafficking. We need something to pin that on the both of them but there aren’t any other deposits large enough.” 

“You mean we need to find proof of the one thing we’ve failed to find proof of? Great.” Heiran deadpanned. 

“It’ll be okay.”

Jinyoung looked over at Mark and the sharp determination that glinted off his eyes. He had never seen his friend so sure of anything before. “I promise, we’ll figure something out. It’s not over yet.”

Heiran gave him a half-hearted smile that screamed of how little faith she had left in their plan. The more they struggled, the higher the chance that someone was going to find and kill them all before they got a chance to fight back. “I’m going to go take a shower, if Lucy wakes up can one of you give her the fruit I put in the fridge.”

“Yeah, don’t worry.” Mark said, following her with his eyes as she stood and walked to the bathroom. 

Once the door was shut and the water turned on, Jinyoung looked at Mark, “You should tell her soon.”

“About what?” Mark asked ignorantly. 

Jinyoung picked up a piece of fruit and took a bite, “That you love her.”

“I’m not doing that.” Mark said incredulously. 

Jinyoung shook his head, “I know you’re waiting because you don’t want to say anything when you have no idea what tomorrow holds but isn’t that the exact reason why you _should_ tell her? If someone from GOT7 catches up to you and kills you before you tell her how you feel, won’t you regret it?”

Before Mark could say anything, Jaebum came through the door. Mark jumped on the distraction, grateful, “Hey, how did it go?”

“Not bad, I sent a bunch of men after a bad lead, hopefully, that’ll keep them preoccupied until we find something. I’m doing all the digging I can but I’m telling you guys, her CEO has everything locked up tight. And I think whatever he’s hiding, GOT7 is after it too.” Jaebum said as he kicked off his shoes. 

Mark frowned, “Why do you think that?”

“I went by the CEO’s place to see what I could find and his entire house is trashed, someone got to it first.” He explained. 

Jinyoung looked concerned, “Do you think they found whatever it was?”

“Doubt it, if they had to turn over the entire house the chances that they found it is unlikely.” Jaebum concluded. “How’s she holding up?”

“Not well. She’s pretending but I can tell she’s getting really stressed that we haven’t found anything useful. I’m not going to lie, it’s making me a little nervous too. We’re sitting ducks at this point.” Mark said while bouncing his knee. “If we can’t think of a way to be on the offensive, we need to start preparing to be defensive.”

Jaebum looked concerned, “What are you saying?”

“I’m not sure just yet, I’ve been doing some thinking and I might have a plan but I’m still working out some of the kinks.” Mark said while staring off at the wall.

Jinyoung quirked a brow, “Want to clue us in?”

“No.” Mark said with a lopsided smile.

Jaebum rolled his eyes, “Well, it better be a good plan because we’re severely out of our depth.”

Mark hummed when he spotted Lucy by the door, rubbing her eyes. He set his mug down and stood, “Hey sunshine, your mom made you a snack, are you hungry?”

She nodded and he walked to the kitchen, ruffling her hair as he passed her. The men watched Lucy trail after him like a duckling imprinting on its parent. The little girl was sharing quiet words with him as he plated her fruit and set it on the counter for her to eat. 

Jinyoung side-eyed Jaebum, he still wasn’t used to working with someone who he had only heard about through stories but he saw a touch of sadness in his eyes and wondered how much it must hurt seeing someone else living the life he wanted, even if under these circumstances. 

“You okay?” He asked. 

Jaebum cut his gaze over to him and he smiled, honestly and genuinely like someone who had finally found peace, “I think I am.”

\-----

Eun frowned as she played with the condensation on her ice coffee. She had spoken to Yugyeom plenty of times on the phone, usually when he wanted to check to see if Heiran was free for lunch or when he’d drop Lucy off at the offices but other than that they didn’t really speak. 

So it was strange when he had called the office and asked to speak specifically to her and asked her to meet. Sure, he was hot but with everything that had happened over the last few months with Heiran and the company she wasn’t ready for any more surprises or abnormalities. 

This was supposed to be a career-boosting executive assistant position. She was supposed to be shadowing and supporting her idol. Not dealing with gangsters, murders, and reporters blowing up her phone. 

“So…was there something you wanted to talk about?” She asked awkwardly. 

He ran his fingers through the hair on the back of his neck, he had called her with so much gusto that he hadn’t considered how stiff the air would be once they sat down. It was the first time they ever talked about something other than Heiran’s schedule.

“Urm, this might be a little weird but I wanted to know if anything strange happened to Heiran leading up to her being fired.” He asked. 

Eun knit her brows, “I don’t think so, like don’t get me wrong, she wasn’t acting like herself but I can’t think of any concrete reason.”

“What do you mean she wasn’t acting like herself?” He asked, intrigued. 

She scratched her head, “She was just taking time off a lot more than she usually does or she’d just take really long lunches. I don’t know, she just wasn’t really as present as she used to be.”

“And you don’t know what could’ve caused that? When was the first time she acted differently?” He pressed. 

Eun eyed him wearily, “Why can’t you ask her yourself?”

“She…I haven’t really been able to get in touch with her recently and she hasn’t been home. I don’t know if she left on a vacation or something but right now I have no idea where she is. Anything you can tell me would help.” He stressed.

Her forehead creased in thought, “Um, well, I remember months ago coming into her office and she was sitting on the floor surrounded by paper and files. It was like a tornado hit. I asked her what happened and she just rushed out and said she’d deal with it later. And that was right after—“

Yugyeom sat up when her words trailed off and her eyes widened to herself. She looked rattled like she had just remembered something troubling, “What? What was it?”

“Earlier that day these two men came into the office, they looked really intimidating and when I tried to tell them that they couldn’t see Heiran without an appointment they got aggressive and demanded to be let in. They basically forced themselves inside and when Heiran came from her meeting she told me to leave for lunch so she could deal with it herself.” Eun recounted with a shiver. “When I came back, that’s when I found her sitting on the floor.”

“Do you remember anything about those men?” He asked desperately. 

She nodded, “I mean, one of them was older and wore a fancy suit, I don’t remember much else but I remember the other guy really well.”

“Really? Why?” He asked curiously. 

She blinked at him, “Because the other guy was Mark, her personal assistant. He actually started working for her the day after.”

Yugyeom stiffened, his worst hypothesis was starting to come true, “Okay, okay, okay.” He said quietly, trying to calm himself down, “What about the other guy? The older one? Is there anything else you can remember about him or how he looked? Anything? Please try and remember.”

Eun chewed nervously on her lip and squeezed her eyes tightly trying to dig out a piece of her memory that she may have locked away before her eyes shot open, “Oh! Well, I don’t really know how much this will help but I remember thinking that the older man kinda reminded me of someone. Like some of his features looked familiar.”

Yugyeom narrowed his eyes, “Familiar to who?”

“To Heiran. Like they could be related.” 


	34. Thirtyfourth

He should’ve known better. 

When Mark stepped walked across the living room to find an envelope slipped under the front door, he should’ve known better. No one knew where he was staying and the envelope had no return or mailing address which meant someone knew where he was and stood on the other side of the door but walked away without trying to kill him. 

But his name was on the envelope and he was so surprised that he didn’t pause to think about how strange it was. He didn’t stop and consider that whatever was in the envelope was meant to stir shit up. 

Because as his eyes read over the contents over and over, his head started to spin. The words weren’t making any sense, too scientific for his mind to comprehend. He grabbed Jinyoung’s laptop and began searching up the terms he didn’t understand. Jinyoung had left to try to bug the CEO’s home and Jaebum had taken Heiran and Lucy out for fresh air, Heiran had worried that the little girl becoming depressed and needed a change of scenery. 

The silence was taunting him as he slowly pieced together what was on the papers that were sent to him. 

It was around the 6th time that he was reading the pages that he noticed a handwritten note on the back of the last page. 

_Looks like the Duchess has been keeping secrets. Too bad I know a few of hers. Better make sure she keeps her mouth shut or else._

_-GOT7_

\-----

When Heiran, Jaebum, and Lucy all came home, they found Mark sitting on the couch, holding pieces of paper in his hands. To anyone else they would’ve assumed he was just deep in thought, but Mark always looked up whenever Heiran or Lucy walked into the room. His eyes always darted to them as soon as he could. 

So they knew immediately that something had happened. 

“Everything okay?” She asked as she kicked off her shoes and helped Lucy out of hers. 

He lifted her head and took her in. She looked happier after having been out, her cheeks were red from the chill but there was a sparkle in her eyes. His gaze then moved to Lucy, the little girl who always looked a little bit like Heiran but never as much as he assumed a daughter should look like her mother.

She also looked brighter and more refreshed. Looking at her, he wondered why he never saw it before, why the anomalies never really raised any red flags. Maybe he just didn’t want to look too deep into it or maybe he just figured that even if he brought it up he knew she wouldn’t give him a straight answer.

“Mark?” Jaebum asked with a frown. 

“Lucy?” Mark called out quietly, looking only at her, “Can you give us a few minutes? You can watch tv.”

She glanced up at her mother and Heiran smiled, kissing her on the head, “Go on, sunshine.”

Once Lucy was out of earshot, Mark stood and handed Heiran the pages he had clutched tight in his hand for an hour, “This was slid under the door today addressed to me.”

Heiran looked confused until she started reading through the pages. Her eyes widened when she caught the last page and looked up at him, caution in his eyes, “Who gave this to you?”

“Who do you think?” He said bitterly, “Your dad.”

Jaebum looked over her shoulder before his eyes widened, “Woah, wait, is that a DNA test?”

“Lucy’s DNA test.” Mark said softly. His eyes zeroed in on Heiran who only stared back, “I don’t really know what to make of it but based on the results, you’re more related to Lucy’s father than you are to Lucy.”

She shook her head with tears filling her eyes, “It’s not what you think.”

“What does that even mean?” He asked, his brows twisted in confusion.

She was trembling, "Mark, please."

"I'm just confused, what does any of this mean?" He asked with a serious stare on his face.

She squeezed her eyes shut as if it physically pained her to speak, “Lucy…biologically…isn’t my daughter. She’s my niece. Her father was my older brother.”

Jaebum looked at his feet as Mark took a sharp breath, “Where are her biological parents?”

“They died.” She whispered, “In a car crash.”

**_7 Years Ago_ **

_Heiran stood next to Lucy’s hospital bed reaching out to touch her arm. There was an oxygen mask covering more than half her face and bandages covering different parts of her body._

_The doctors said that her mother had shielded her from the impact. And her father had taken most of the hit, he had died instantly, but his wife had died on the way to the hospital. Heiran prayed that she didn’t see him die. She couldn’t imagine how much that would’ve hurt her._

_Heiran collapsed in the chair and sobbed into her hands. She didn’t think her world could get any darker after her mother passed away. She always thought that at least she had her brother, she’d always have her brother._

_Johnny Seo, she always teased him about the American nickname. She preferred Young Ho. Every minute of her life, she had Young Ho next to her, looking out for her, being the shoulder she cried on, the rock she leaned on, the ray of light in a black hole._

_And he was gone._

_What was she going to do? How was she going to live? She was all alone now. Truly alone._

_She was on campus one minute and then her phone rang and she blinked and was in the hospital to identify her brother and sister-in-law’s remains. This was just a bad dream. This was all just a sickeningly realistic bad dream._

_But then why did her chest hurt? Why could she hear her heart beating?_

_Why wasn’t her brother waking her up?_

_She had cried when her brother got married, she didn’t want him to move out and start a new life and have a new family. She wanted him to stay in their little run down 2-bedroom apartment where they stayed up and watched tv on the cable they stole from the neighbours. Even though he promised he’d always be her brother, she didn’t want to be left behind._

_But this was worse._

_Now she wanted him back with his family, with his wife and daughter who treated her like part of their family. She wanted him laughing loudly and taking pictures of every single moment. She wanted him sneaking kisses with his wife when he didn’t think she was looking. She wanted to film him playing with his kid who he loved more than she thought possible._

_She didn’t want to be left behind._

_Lifting her head, she looked at Lucy’s unconscious body. The doctors said that it was a miracle that she survived but Heiran knew that the reason Lucy was alive wasn’t a miracle but because her parents sacrificed their lives to save her._

_The doctor also said that Heiran needed to decide if she was going to take over guardianship of Lucy or else they’d have to call Child Services. She signed whatever papers they gave her but it wasn’t until this second that the seriousness of what she had committed to had sunk in._

_From the moment ink met paper, she was Lucy’s guardian, parent, adult, mother, whatever you want to call it, she was it. She didn’t know the first thing about raising a child. While Johnny and his wife poured over parenting books, she was eating pasta and teasing them about studying for the parenting exams._

_She wasn’t prepared to be a mother, she was prepared to be an aunt. The person who buys gifts, gossips with her niece once she’s old enough and gives her everything her parents were too strict to give her. She wasn’t ready to be the responsible one._

_She hadn’t even graduated yet, she didn’t have a steady job or enough money to have a daughter. Johnny and his wife barely had enough saved up to pay rent and they both had jobs. She was going to fail, she was going to do a bad job and be a bad parent. She was going to let her brother down._

_Why did this happen to her?_

_Maybe she should ask the doctors to call the Child Services people again. Lucy was still young, she could probably get adopted by a good family that could raise her better than she ever could. A family that was actually ready for a child. A few months in foster care would be better than a lifetime stuck with an unfit, unprepared mother._

_Making up her mind, she stood with her purse and started walking to the door to find someone to help her when Lucy’s cracked voice echoed out._

_“Mhhmm, aunty?”_

_Heiran wiped at her face and spun around, rushing and leaning over Lucy in worry, “Lucy, sweetie, are you okay? Thank god, shh shh, don’t sit up. Let me call a nurse.”_

_“W—What happened? Where’s mommy and daddy? What’s going on?” She asked, scared._

_Heiran opened her mouth but she couldn’t get the words out. She didn’t want to be the one to tell her the truth. But the fear and uncertainty in the 3 year-old’s eyes mixed with the relief when she saw her aunt there waiting for her made everything fall into place. Heiran was sinking and fast and if she wasn’t careful she was never going to make it out of this black pit alive._

_She wasn’t going to let Lucy get hurt the way that she was. And maybe raising her and putting all of her efforts in giving her the best life would save her from her own helplessness. The pain might not drown her if she had Lucy keeping her afloat._

_She didn’t know how she was going to do it, but she was going to raise her. She was going to be there for her._

_Lucy was her ray of sunshine in all the darkness._

_And she would protect her or die trying._

\-----

Mark let out a shaky breath as he looked away, “Does she know what really happened?”

“Yeah.” Heiran whispered, “Once she was discharged I had to tell her, her parents were suddenly gone, I couldn’t lie.”

He nodded, blinking hard, “What caused the accident?”

“Drunk driver.” She said, her voice catching. “They arrested and charged the guy a few months later.”

“Why didn’t you just tell me?” He asked with confusion painted in his eyes. 

Her stare dropped, “Because then I had to remember the moment when I almost abandoned her. You kept telling me how I was this amazing, selfless mother. I didn’t want to deal with you being disappointed in me when you learned the truth. The truth that I almost gave her up.”

“I wish you just told me.” He whispered thickly.

Jaebum cleared his throat and slipped the papers out of Heiran’s hands and flipped them over, “Why would someone send this to Mark, though? What did they think was going to happen? It’s not like you told him that it was his kid or something.”

“I think it’s a distraction method.” Mark mumbled while staring at Heiran, “We’d be too consumed with this bomb, that we’d be off our game. That must mean we’re getting to them.”

Heiran broke eye contact and crossed her arms, “How did he even get a DNA test done?”

“When Jackson kidnapped Lucy, you said that he gave her back to Mark without putting up much of a fight, right?” Jaebum prompted. 

Mark finally pulled his gaze away from her and frowned, “Are you saying that he lied and took a strand of her hair or something?”

“We’ve determined that her father lied once already because I never threatened to come after Lucy. He must’ve sent Jackson to get a sample under the pretence of protecting her.” He reasoned. “It’d make sense.”

“Does your father know that Johnny died?” Mark asked her. 

Heiran shrugged, “I don’t know but if he had been keeping tabs on me, he probably kept tabs on his other child too.”

“That means he probably knew you weren’t her mother and wanted to double-check. It was probably going to be leverage.” Jaebum said. 

Mark pressed his fingers against his eyes, “Fuck, this is probably going to be a custody thing.”

“What do you mean?” Heiran demanded, alert.

Mark gave her a solemn look, “He’s Lucy’s grandfather and he has proof that other than you, Lucy has no other living relative. If you lose custody and he comes forward as her relative, he’ll get custody, so he’s saying that if you do anything to come for him, he’ll expose all the illegal activity that’s been done in your name, send you to jail and take Lucy, which he knows you’ll never let happen. Which means he’d basically telling you to back off. Telling _us_ to back off.”

“Oh my god.” She whispered, her hand shaking. 

Jaebum ran his hands through his hair, “We need to regroup and figure out a change in plans to make sure that doesn’t happen. This changes everything now.”

Heiran was frozen solid, immobile and Mark was quick to move closer and pull her into his arms, “It’ll be fine, we won’t let anything happen to her, even if it means kidnapping her before your father can claim custody.”

She leaned her head against his neck and squeezed her eyes shut. She took Mark hugging her as a silent message that he held no anger or hurt from her keeping the secret for so long. But the tips of her fingers and toes were freezing from the cold sweat that drenched her. 

A loud exhale escaped her and she tried to ignore the pounding in her head. He pressed his lips to the side of her head and looked over at Jaebum anxiously who could only give him a helpless shrug of his shoulders. Before they could think any further, the sound of a key turning in a lock echoed in the room before the front door creaked open.

“Uh…hey, um, guys?” Everyone looked over to where Jinyoung stood with a confused smile, “Look who I found outside.”

He pushed the door open wider Yeonhee stood behind him with a raised brow when she spotted Jaebum, “Ew, what the hell is DS doing here?”

\-----

Jaebum scoffed, “Me? What the hell are _you_ doing here? Did your Boss send you here to kill Mark? Go for it, I dare you, see if you make it across the living room before I put you down.”

An amused smile curled up her lip, “Wow, I missed a lot, haven’t I?”

Mark’s grip on Heiran tightened as he slowly pushed her behind him, “What are you doing here, Yeonhee? I know you’re his new number 2. Don’t think you can fool us.”

“Jeez, glad to know you think so highly of me.” She snarked, “Unlike the group of you running around messily breaking into his office and making plans while being bugged, I actually used my brain.” 

Heiran narrowed her eyes at her, “Meaning?”

“ _Meaning_ when he tried to use my broken heart to convince me to turn on you, I said yes and collected all the inside info you probably need and don't have. You’re welcome, by the way.” She bit out. 

Jaebum tensed his jaw, “How do we know that you’re not just faking so that we trust you?”

“Because I have info that I haven’t shared with him that I’m going to share with you. I'm literally helping you put him away. Again, you're welcome.” She barked. 

Jinyoung stared at her in awe, “How did you even know where we were?”

She looked over at him and smiled slightly with no spite or malice, “Who do you think kept sending you all those spam emails? I was hoping you’d open one eventually, got your location that way.”

“H-How?” He breathed out. 

Her eyes glittered slyly, “I learned from the best.”

Mark tilted his head curiously at the back and forth until Heiran pushed past him and got in Yeonhee’s face, “Start talking. What info do you have?”

“Oh, wow, Ms. VP has a lot more bite than before. It’s a good look on you. Your conference room cockiness was never that intimidating, but this is new. I like it.” Yeonhee teased, “No wonder Mark’s so soft on you.”

Mark scowled, “If you keep dodging our questions, it’s going to be harder to convince us you’re on our side. And easier for me to pull out my gun.”

“Fine. The Boss has been really pushing me to search Heiran's and the CEO’s houses for something. He doesn’t know what it is but the CEO barged in a few days ago yelling about how he had dirt to take him down. The Boss wants me to find it.” She reported. 

Heiran chewed on her lip, “And did you?”

“Yeah, I think I did.” Yeonhee said with a smile. 

Mark raised a brow, “Well?”

Yeonhee stepped out of the door and came back in carrying a familiar ugly painting. Heiran blinked at it, “Wait, what?”

“Found this in the back of your closet. There’s an exact replica in the CEO’s house when I went to search it.” She said while leaning it against the wall. 

Jinyoung raised his hand, “I can confirm, I saw it when I was bugging his place.”

“But my dad gave that to me.” Heiran said softly. 

Yeonhee tapped her fingers against the frame, “I think your dad bought it from your CEO and I think the CEO knew that GOT7 would one day send people to his office and house to silence him, so he thought hiding dirt right under their noses would be the best way to protect himself."

Heiran’s eyes widened and in a second, she lifted Mark’s shirt and pulled out his knife before walking up to the painting. She raised her arm back and swung it across the canvas, the blade gliding through the fabric.

Everyone gathered around and watched Heiran pry the frame apart until one piece of the frame rattled. Wedging the blade under a nail, she split the wood open and gasped when a USB key fell by her feet. 

She stared at it on the ground before whispering Jinyoung’s name. He moved fast, grabbing it and powering up his laptop. There was only one file on the drive and when Jinyoung clicked on it, a video played on his screen. 

“What is this?” Yeonhee asked as she watched her Boss and Heiran’s old CEO appear in frame. 

Heiran’s hand covered her mouth in shock, “Proof. He recorded my father admitting to human trafficking and being the leader of GOT7. Everything they had agreed to, he got it on camera. This is exactly the proof we need to take my dad down.”

\-----

After watching the video another 2 times, they had come to the agreement to give the USB to Mark who had locked it in the safe in his room. For now, they were just going to hang onto it and keep it in a safe place. No one knew what to say after they discovered the video. It seemed too good to be true. 

Proof that could implicate her father and her boss in criminal activity without implicating herself and it had fallen straight into their laps? It seemed too easy. Everyone was too scared to make a move with it just yet knowing that her father would try to take Lucy from her as retaliation. They needed time to sit on it and think up a good plan.

They could send it to the cops and it would set everything in motion to take down GOT7 and her old company. It would all be over and they’d be free.

But it was like everyone was too scared to do anything with the proof. 

So, they left it in the safe and tried to pretend that everything was normal and they didn’t have the solution to all their problems locked away behind a 6 digit code. 

Jaebum had set out food on the table and although everyone had a plate in their hands, no one touched their food and was too consumed in their own conversations. 

“Eat.” Mark said to Heiran who was just rearranging pieces of chicken on her dish.

She set the plate down and leaned forward on the couch before staring at the TV in front of her, “I have no appetite. My head is too full of noise.” 

“Want to know what’s in my head?” He asked, slouching lazily into the pillows. 

She glanced at him over her shoulder, “What?”

He met her eyes and she felt her breath catch at how intensely he watched her. She couldn’t decipher the emotion in his eyes because it was too heavy, “How fucking beautiful you are.”

Her lips parted speechlessly, just letting his words absorb into her skin before she snapped out of it. Her heart shot up her throat and her head felt dizzy like she could see stars, “That’s what you’re thinking? Why?”

He shrugged, “Because I don’t think I tell you nearly enough.” He sat up and lean towards her close enough that he could just breathe out the words for her to hear, “You’re so beautiful that I still can’t believe you let me sleep with you. I don’t deserve you but fuck, I like you too damn much and you’re pretty as hell.”

“Why are you doing this?” She whispered, reaching out to cup his cheek.

He tilted his head and tenderly kissed the inside of her wrist making her huff out a breath, “Because I want you to feel good. I want to make you feel something other than fear.”

“You’re sweet.” She mumbled, “You’re a big softie, aren’t you?”

His lips curved up as she brushed her thumb against his skin before dropping her hand, “You’re not disappointed in me about what I almost did to Lucy?”

“No.” He grumbled, “You lost your brother and sister-in-law that day. All that matters is that you’re giving her the best life you can. I was just surprised and I had no idea that you’d gone through that much.”

She ran her fingers over the tattoos on his arm, “I’ve lost a lot of people in my life, I don’t like remembering all of it. Johnny hurt me the hardest because it was so sudden. It wasn’t an illness that ate away or a father that showed up less and less. One day I was eating lunch at their house and the next I was planning their funeral.”

“I bet he could rest easy knowing Lucy had you.” Mark said. He wondered if this was how she felt when he told her about his past. The strong urge to go back in time and protect her from all the bad things that would scar them. What a pair they were.

Her smile was tinged with sadness, “That’s all I wish for.”

“Hey, sorry to interrupt…” 

Heiran pulled away from Mark and looked over at Yeonhee who was rocking awkwardly on her heels. “Um, do you think I could talk to Mark?” 

Heiran brows raised but she nodded abandoning her plate on the table, “I need to check on Lucy anyways.”

Once she was gone, Yeonhee sat down next to him. He watched her carefully waiting for her to speak and when she didn’t, he decided to break the silence, “Thanks.”

She flinched, “For what?”

“If it wasn’t for you, we’d never find that evidence. You could’ve destroyed it or gave it to the Boss, thanks for bringing it.”

“Oh, yeah, I mean, it was the right thing to do. GOT7 isn’t GOT7 without you and Jinyoung.” She said with a stiff laugh. 

Her eyes kept wandering around the room, so he sat up and leaned close to her, “Yeonhee, what did you want to talk about?”

“We’re okay.” She said quietly. “I want us to just be okay.”

He wasn’t entirely sure what she meant and a part of him feared that she meant that she wanted things to go back to normal. “Okay?”

“I’m okay with things now. I’m okay with you and I’m okay with you and her or you and whoever you want to be with. I’m trying this thing called _letting go of the past_ and I’m just…I’m finally okay. And with everything that’s happened, I want you to be okay with me, too.” She said it with a stone face and he realized that this was as close to a real emotional conversation as he was going to get with Yeonhee. This was her accepting that he couldn’t be what she wanted and finally moving on. 

He used to be like that too, stiff and cold with his words but being with Heiran and Lucy had thawed him out. And maybe with the right person or people, Yeonhee could thaw out too. 

Ten was wrong, it wasn’t something about them together that fucked with her brain chemistry. It was something about GOT7 that fucked with all of their brain chemistries. It turned them into someone ugly and obsessive, expecting to always get what they wanted by any means necessary. Maybe cutting ties would give them a chance to find a new normal. 

“I’ve always been okay with you Yeonhee.” He said softly. 

Her eyes warmed and her shoulders dropped as she nodded, “That’s good.”

“How long?” He asked. 

She gave him a strange look, “How long what?”

“How long do you think Jinyoung’s been pining over you?” He asked with a crooked smile. 

Yeonhee’s eyes widened and her jaw dropped, “Wh—“

“I guess the more important question is how long have you been pining back?” He smirked.

She sat frozen, "How did you know?"

"I didn't, not for a while and I feel like an idiot for not seeing it at first. And fuck, I feel like a bad friend for being so blind, but once I started paying more attention, it was obvious. I can't believe it took me so long. He looks at you like he knows he's never going to have you." There was so much warmth and understanding in his gaze that even someone like her was getting choked up. He looked at her like she was normal like she was allowed to have feelings and that it wasn't unbelievable that someone could have feelings for her. 

She gulped down the emotion and watched him like a hawk, "How did you know I felt something back? I've been after you all this time."

He smiled knowingly and she wondered if Mark had always been like this or if Heiran made him more human and open, "The first thing I noticed was that Jinyoung was always looking at you whenever you were together. After a while, I noticed that you started looking back."

Yeonhee pressed her lips together into a thin line, holding her breath, but he just stood when he saw Heiran come back into the room, “You should tell him. He's always the one that cares about other people, it’d be nice if someone told him how much they care about him.”

“Why don’t you tell him?” She snapped back. 

He just grinned, “I tell him all the time but I bet he’d rather hear it from you.”

He walked away and when Jinyoung noticed her alone, he sat next to her and shoved a carton of food at her, “I stole the green beans from Jaebum cause I know how much you like them.”

She stared at his offering before taking it from him with a timid smile.

\-----

After a while, the food went cold, conversations were petering out and the veil of pretend was wearing off. Everyone gathered in the living room, tiredly lounging around while soullessly watching the television. 

It was clear no one was really paying attention, too lost in their own thoughts, but there was a sense of security in their small group. People they’ve known most of their lives all crowded together, leaning on one another. 

“We should just mail it in, shouldn’t we?” Heiran said softly, finally breaking the silence and acknowledging the little key to freedom that was locked away in Mark’s room. 

Everyone fell silent and turned to Mark, waiting to see what he’d say. His eyes were on the carpet but the way they darted around, they could tell he was thinking up a proper plan. Finally he lifted his head, “Yeah, you’re right, we should.”

He stood and walked to his room before coming back with an envelope and the USB. I’ll go right now, I’ll leave it on Yugyeom’s desk. We can trust him.”

“They know the address of this place so we should all move to a new location after. This is getting dangerous.” Jaebum muttered, “They’re taunting us, they could’ve broke in and killed you but they didn’t. They’re planning something so need to move fast.”

Heiran nodded, “You’re right. We’ll start packing our stuff.”

“We probably can’t use your safehouses anymore but I have some people we can trust who can take us in.” Mark said. 

Yeonhee checked her watch, “I should head back before anyone notices I’ve been gone. I’ll be in touch and warn you if anything happens.”

“Thanks.” Heiran said, causing Yeonhee to look over at her, “For everything. What you’re doing is really dangerous and it saved us. I know we’re not really close but…thanks.”

Yeonhee took a deep breath before her lips twitched on their own, “Yeah, whatever. I guess I kinda owe you after the whole SmartLogic thing.”

Jinyoung grinned, “So I guess that’s it. We’ll lay low and by tomorrow morning, shit’s going to hit the fan.”

Jaebum’s smile faded when he noticed the headline flashing on the muted TV. “Looks like it already has.”

Everyone looked over at the screen as he turned the volume up. Jaebum shook his head in shock,“Woah, check it out. Looks like the press caught wind. So much for the _“he ran off to live on the beach”_ lie.” 

Heiran could only stare silently at the picture of the VP of Legal that was flashing on the television. Her mouth dried, this couldn’t end well, not if people were paying attention to his ‘mysterious’ and sudden disappearance. 

_“It has been revealed to the public that the Vice President that despite initial reports that stated he had stepped down from his position and moved abroad, the truth was something no one saw coming.”_

“Who’s that?” Jinyoung asked.

“He was an executive at my old company. He’s one of Jackson’s connections that got him into the company.” Heiran mumbled.

“No, he’s not.” Yeonhee said incredulously. 

Heiran turned to her, “What do you mean?” 

“Jackson was his dealer. He sells coke to suits on the side.” She said while pointing at the screen.

“Is that why Jackson made you kill him?” Jaebum asked Mark. 

Yeonhee’s jaw dropped as she pivoted to stare at Mark, “You’re the one who killed that guy?”

“Yeah, why?” He asked, his brows knitting.

Yeonhee scratched her head, “I heard Jackson telling one of our people about how that guy had recognized him and told the CEO about his connection with GOT7. He said he was going to deal with him, I assumed he was going to kill him himself. Why did they make you do it?”

“Probably to put you in your place since he became your boss's number 2.” Jaebum said dryly. 

“No.” Heiran whispered, her voice cracking while pointing at the screen, “It was to do that.”

_“The body of the young Vice President was found by joggers early Monday morning. Police believe that this is connected to the murder of GOT7 gang member and Vice President of Finance Jackson Wang, earlier this month. Although investigators are not releasing information, they are saying that they believe the murders are related to another GOT7 member. They say that they have suspects within the gang that they are investigating but no further details were provided at the press conference today.”_

Jinyoung whirled around to Mark, “How is this possible? Didn’t you send the cleanup team to dispose of the body?”

“I—I didn’t.” Mark said slowly, his eyes wide, “Fuck. I was…I was so disoriented, they told me that they’d deal with the cleanup and told me to leave. I just left. I wanted to get as far away as possible, I didn’t even think about it. I assumed they would’ve taken care of it because they were there for the entire thing.” 

Jaebum swallowed deeply, “So you’re saying that they had time alone with the body. Time to plant evidence and DNA on it to lead the cops to you.” 

“Yeah…I guess so.” He stuttered out. His mind was racing, it had completely slipped his mind to check if the body was removed and disposed of. 

“Great.” Yeonhee said sarcastically but if you saw her eyes, you could see the real worry, “So you don’t just have all of GOT7 coming for but you have the entire police force too.”

“If they have suspects, that means they probably have your name.” Heiran nervously. “Which will connect you to me because we worked together and if we turn in proof that your Boss and my Boss are both into trafficking now, the cops will be suspicious of how we're all connected…”

Mark met her gaze and for the first time since she met him, he looked completely helpless and without answers, “And they’re going to implicate us.”


	35. Thirtyfifth

After Yeonhee left to return to GOT7’s headquarters to get more information, the rest of them packed up their belongings and piled into the car before driving away from Jaebum’s safehouse. It was clear that their location was jeopardized which meant all of Jaebum’s properties were probably unsafe to use. 

Lucky for them, Yeonhee had a second apartment that they were going to use until they could come up with somewhere more secure. They set off in the middle of the night, the car silent as they drove. A heavy cloud had hung over them all but especially Mark and Heiran. Jinyoung had set up alerts to follow the case and any developments and he was working with Jaebum to find ways to get onto a police radio frequency so that they had an inside ear into what the police knew. 

But Heiran and Mark were immobile, unable to leap into action the way the others had. Mark was seated in the passenger seat next to Jaebum and looked into the rearview mirror to the backseat where Jinyoung, Heiran and Lucy were sitting. 

Lucy was resting against Heiran’s arm who was in the process of draping her coat over her daughter when Mark caught her eye. She gave him a weak smile before looking back at Lucy. Every piece of Heiran he learned about, the more in awe she left him. 

His parents couldn’t even love the son they had, but here was a woman who had such a big heart that she could love a child that wasn’t hers. 

“How are you doing?” Jaebum mumbled while glancing at him from the side of his eyes. 

Mark moved his eyes back to the road, “The minimum sentence for 1st degree murder is 25 years.”

“It’s not 1st degree, it’s not premeditated.” Jaebum said back. 

Mark didn’t flinch, “They kidnapped him and took him out to a field. Hard to argue it’s not premeditated.” 

“The cops won’t know that. There’s no proof.” Jaebum muttered grumpily. 

Mark laughed soullessly, “I’m sure they planted proof and once I’m tied to him, they’ll tie me to Jackson.”

“I’m the one that did that and the cops rushed in right after, they had no time to plant anything on the body.”

“Doesn’t matter. It makes more sense that the person who took out the old VP also had something to do with the new VP getting gunned down.” Mark spat. 

“That’s enough.” Jinyoung barked, silencing them. “We’re not having this conversation right now.”

A tense silence followed until Jaebum spoke up, “Seo, why don’t you tell us a bit about Johnny?”

“Jesus.” Mark muttered with a wince. 

“Oh my god.” Jinyoung groaned under his breath. 

Jaebum scoffed, “Oh, I’m sorry, I’m just trying to help change the subject. I don’t see any of your imbeciles coming up with anything better.”

“Silence is better than making someone talk about their dead brother, asshole.” Jinyoung sniped. 

Mark shut his eyes and rubbed his forehead, “I think silence is what we all need now.”

“He always made everyone laugh.”

Jinyoung looked at Heiran while Mark and Jaebum glanced at her through the mirrors. Heiran was staring off at the window, her fingers calmingly tapping against Lucy’s shoulders, “He was always cracking a joke, never at anyone’s expense, he was always good at making everyone feel comfortable. If he was in a room, someone would always be laughing. I think when I’m 80 and my memory is fading, I’ll always remember the sound of his laughter."

“That pageant, you said someone dared you to do it.” Mark said quietly, “Was it Johnny?”

Jaebum slammed his foot on the brakes and everyone groaned as they were jerked forward. He turned in his seat and glared, “You were in a pageant and never told me?”

“Keep driving.” Mark ordered why massaging the back of his neck. "And ease up on the brakes, fuck."

Heiran rolled her eyes with a smile, “It wasn’t exactly my crowning achievement.”

“Because she didn’t win. It literally wasn’t her crowning achievement. Some other girl walked out of that ballroom with the crown.” Mark blurted with a laugh. 

Heiran gasped and stretched her hand out to slap his shoulder repeatedly, “Runner up is a big deal, you know! I beat out like a hundred applicants and 25 competitors and it was my first time in the pageant circuit.”

“No wonder he’s known for making everyone laugh. He must’ve got the crowd roaring when you dropped the baton during the talent portion.” Mark teased. 

Jinyoung gasped, "Baton twirling? Come on, I thought you'd do something more dignified like playing the harp."

Her hits got more aggressive and her cursing got stronger. Despite the dire situation, they were in and the fact that they were literally running away from their death, they all laughed hysterically at her complaints. Soon the ruckus quieted down and Heiran hadn’t even noticed the smile on her face. It was the first time she spoke or even thought about her brother after his death without crying or getting sad. 

“He made the bet out of nowhere, I wasn’t interested in pageants and he knew that. But I think he made me do it because he thought it would boost my confidence. But he masked it as a dare to trick me into agreeing.” She said melancholically. “Getting dolled up and walking on that stage, I realized how powerful I could feel for the first time. Ever since then, I wanted to always feel that way no matter what I did. It's why I love high heels. He was the best older brother I could ever have.”

She noticed Mark’s hand reaching back towards her and she gratefully tucked her hand with his. He squeezed it reassuringly, “I bet you were the best little sister he could ever have.”

“Yeah.” Jaebum agreed. “Your brother would’ve hated me, though.”

Jinyoung snorted, “Your first adult fight with Johnny probably would’ve been the first time you brought Jaebum home.”

Jaebum shot Jinyoung a dirty look over his shoulder, “Listen, nerd, I met you a few weeks ago, we’re not close enough for you to be insulting me.”

Heiran chuckled and stared at the back of Mark’s head. 

She wondered what her brother would’ve thought of him.

\-----

Once they were in the apartment, they all went their separate ways to wash up and get settled. They were all operating on barely any sleep and they needed to recharge before the sun came up. At the rate they were going, they’d probably need to be changing locations every other day. 

If the cops were closing in on him and GOT7, he was running out of time and they didn’t have any sort of plan of attack. 

Yeonhee’s apartment was smaller so they all took turns changing, when it was his turn, he pulled his shirt over his head and rummaged around his bag for a clean one. He was running out of fresh clothes, the thought of doing laundry wasn't a priority over the last few days. 

He wondered if Lucy and Heiran had enough to wear, he hadn’t really packed their bags systematically. Maybe he had to send Jaebum out to get them more clothes.

When his phone rang by the bedside table, he was pulled from his thoughts and felt his heart stop. 

The only people who knew that number were sitting on the other side of the door and had no reason to be calling him. He slowly picked up his phone and stared at the unknown number, but there was a small part of him that knew exactly who would be on the other end. 

“Hello?”

“You cleared out so fast, we just missed you.” His Boss teased mockingly into his ear.

Mark’s fist curled by his side. “Well, you shouldn’t have given us a head start.” 

“Fair enough.” He sang. Mark could see him casually pacing around his office like he had all the time in the world.

“It’s almost like you wanted us to get away.” Mark hissed.

“In a way, I do. I’d rather call off the army and save myself a million dollars.” He said teasingly.

“So why don’t you?” He asked, “Why not just back down.”

“I would need something in return in that case.” He mused.

Mark felt his jaw tense, but the urge to hang up was outweighed by the lure of an exception, “Like?”

“Ditch the duchess.” His father said simply. It was funny how he used to throw the word ‘daughter’ around all the time to pull on Heiran’s heartstrings and now he was referring to her by a nickname he didn’t even come up with.

“Get the fuck out of here.” Mark snapped back.

His Boss seemed unphased by Mark’s reaction, “I’m serious. If you leave her and come back to GOT7, I can get the police off your back in a snap of a second. I hear that your name is on the top of the list of suspects which I can only imagine is courtesy of Heiran’s little cop friend. I heard he’s been sniffing around about you. I guess he figured out who you really are and now the cops know the name Mark Tuan. Come back to us and I can make them forget it.” 

The lie was so weak that he saw straight through it. He just wanted Heiran on her own and him back inside GOT7’s pocket. The second he was back, he would hold it over Mark’s head to make him do whatever he wanted. If Mark ever stepped out of line, he’d send the police after him.

“No. You trying to bring me back just means that we’re closing in on you and you’re getting nervous. We have you boxed in and you’re scared. I’d rather keep going until your empire is ash. We’re going to take you down, you know we will. It’s too late to go back.”

He chuckled, “I’m not threatened at all, I just want to give you one last chance to save yourself before we end you for good. That VP’s body is riddled with your DNA, the gun with your prints was left at the scene and an anonymous witness called in giving your exact description to the police. Apparently, they saw you driving away.”

“How convenient.” Mark gritted out. He knew his anger wasn’t just towards his former Boss but also towards himself for being so careless. He should've been more careful and not have let his emotions get the better of him, “But my answer is still no. I’m not coming back to you and I’m not throwing Heiran under the bus.” 

“Come on, she lies to you about the kid she’s raising as if it’s her own, she’s playing with you without committing because she’s using you to get her out of this mess before she ditches you, and she’s cozying up to her ex-boyfriend right under your nose. She’s not worth it. Don’t throw your real family away for her. Like you said, it’ll be too late to go back.” He tsked as if he was a father who had the right to give _anyone_ life advice.

Mark almost wanted to laugh at how wrong he was about everything. His Boss thought he was so brilliant and was always 10 steps ahead of them but the one thing he still couldn’t predict was Heiran. He didn’t know how her brain and emotions worked. And he had no clue how she really felt about him. He couldn’t read Heiran, he couldn’t figure her out which is why she threatened him so much. 

“I wouldn’t be so sure.” Mark snarked back.

“I would. Because the truth is, no matter what you know or what proof you have, there’s no taking me down without taking Heiran down whose name is on everything GOT7 touched. And even _you_ aren’t that stupid.” His Boss hissed. 

Mark began pacing but his was more frantic than what he imagined was his Boss’s rhythm, “She could come forward, make a deal with the cops.”

His Boss snorted, “And what? Turn me in? She can’t do that without turning _you_ in. She’d never do that to you. You screwed her over by making her care about you because now she’s giving up a shot at freedom to keep you safe. You’re trapped. You’re not surviving this without someone going behind bars. No matter how human you think you’ve become, your self-preservation is your instinct.”

Mark felt his stomach drop, he was right, they were all tied together and there was no way to take down one without taking down everyone else, even the ones you want to protect. 

And Heiran wouldn’t ever do anything to turn him in, even if it meant her father would go free. That was just another curse of allowing themselves to fall for each other. It was starting to feel like their relationship only came with downsides. 

“There’s no easy out, Mark. You can see that now, right? Just let us deal with her ourselves. You and I, we can work something out, come to an agreement and move on past this little deception. I did this for GOT7, for _us_ , think about all the time you spent with GOT7, everything this gang has done for you. Don’t let her screw over the rest of your life. “

“Rot in hell.” Mark spat out before hanging up. 

He leaned his back against the wall and dropped his head. 

There had been moments when he thought they would somehow find the perfect answer that would save all of them from getting hurt. But it was becoming clear that it wasn’t an option anymore. 

Like his Boss said, there was no taking one down without all of them going down. 

He knew what he had to do now. 

The one thing his Boss was sure he’d never do.

\-----

After hanging up, he raced out of his room and stormed into the living room before looking around frantically, “Hey, where’s Heiran?”

Jinyoung looked up from his laptop, “I think she’s with Lucy, the kid’s confused as hell and she’s getting really restless. Why?”

“I have a plan. I think I finally figured out how to take GOT7 down while keeping Heiran and Lucy out of it.”

Jaebum’s eyes widened, “Really? That’s great, what is it?”

Mark sat down next to them and took a deep breath, “Okay before I tell you, I need you guys to understand that I know it might sound insane but I have to do this and there’s no changing my mind. I’ve been running through a bunch of different plans in my head since we defected from GOT7 but this is the only one that’s felt foolproof. So, I need you guys on my side and you need to promise to trust me.”

Jinyoung looked worried and shared the sentiment with Jaebum whose face grew serious, “Okay, let’s hear it.”

“One more thing.” Mark said before glancing up at the stairs where he could Heiran walking around above their heads, “You can’t tell Heiran until after it’s over.”

\-----

12:30AM

This would be a time that Heiran would think about for the next 3 years. 

It was the time that flashed on the stove clock when Mark stepped out of the room he was in walked across the living room where he found her in the kitchen with a bowl of cereal while the rest of the house was asleep.

He smiled when he saw her, “Midnight snack?”

“Yeah.” She said sheepishly, “I didn’t eat all day, my appetite caught up with me. Do you want a bowl?”

He chuckled and leaned his elbows onto the counter, “I’m okay.”

“Then what are you doing here?” She asked, putting another spoonful into her mouth. 

He hummed, “Couldn’t sleep.”

She swallowed slowly and stared down at her food, she had a feeling the reason he was awake this late was the same reason she had been so hungry. It was hard to fall asleep, "Mark, what are we going to do about this? We're trapped with no way out. My dad's going to screw us all over."

"Don't worry." He said with an easy grin, "I admit I was really freaked out about the body at first but the more I think about it, the more confident I am that everything's going to be okay."

Heiran gave him an incredulous look, just a few hours ago he was deathly silent, talking about prison sentences and looking like he had just seen a ghost. Now he was smiling and acting like this was nothing to lose sleepover. "Where is all this confidence coming from?"

"Just trust me. I'm going to get us out of this mess, I promise you, your father isn't going to win. We have the upper hand and after everything he's done, he won't get away with it." The determined look in his eye managed to placate her even though her gut was screaming at how absurd he sounded. 

The police had proof that he had killed someone and it would only be a matter of time before the police realize it was him. How was he so calm?

But instead of grilling him more, she just nodded before lifting the bowl to her mouth and drinking the remaining milk. When she set the bowl down, his fingers were reaching out to brush off drops of milk that spilled down her chin. Heiran was quick to grab a tissue but his fingers stayed by her mouth, running over her lips.

“You ever figure out what baobei means?” He asked quietly. 

She cleared her throat and set the napkin down, “Never looked it up.”

“Means baby.” He breathed out while leaning close to her, “I didn’t even notice saying it to you the first time, after that…it just felt right. I don’t even know where it came from because it’s not like it’s a word I use often. I guess I just...liked the idea of you being my baby."

She let out a stunned laugh and set the bowl down. Mark raised a brow at the look in her eyes, “What?”

“I always knew what baobei meant, you were right, I was a fancy executive, I have counterparts and clients all over the world. I picked up the language a bit.” She said mischievously. 

He blinked at her in surprise, “Wait, then why did you ask me what it meant?”

Heiran shrugged, “I wanted to know if you’d ever admit it to my face.”

She looked up at him with a teasing smile, waiting to see his own but instead his face fell. He cupped her face and stroked her cheek, “I’m sorry I couldn’t work up the courage to tell you what you need to hear.”

“Mark, I’m not trying to guilt you.” She said with a huff. “I was just being cute.”

He laughed and let his fingers trail up and down her back, “Sorry, I’m not used to you being cute.”

“How dare you!” She said with a fake gasp, “I’m always cute!”

He snickered, “No, you’re not. You’re sexy, pretty, sweet, and, beautiful but you don’t really act cute.”

“Wow, that was smooth as hell.” She snorted before standing to wash her bowl. 

He watched her from the counter, “You seem a bit better.”

“I’ve created my happy place in my head. My mind palace except instead of using it for memories, I’m using it to repress bad feelings.” She said matter-a-factly. 

He tilted his head, intrigued, “You’ve been in a daze since we found out about your Boss’s body. What does this happy place look like?”

Heiran stiffened by the sink before quickly recovering, “It’s my happy place. Meaning it’s none of your business.”

“Oh my god, it’s embarrassing, isn’t it?” He goaded. 

She glared, “Maybe. But you’re not welcome inside my palace.”

He stood and walked closer to Heiran, “Is it a spa? Or a literal palace?”

“Why are you so nosy?” She muttered. 

He pressed his shoulder against hers, “Because you’re being so dodgy which means you have something to hide, which means your mind palace of feelings suddenly got much more interesting.”

“It’s just a house. A nice little house with a big backyard, away from the rest of the city, with enough room for Lucy to grow up and for me to live and work. I’ll have a fancy kitchen that I actually use and a nice living room filled with plants and paintings. And a cozy bedroom that always smells like cinnamon. It’s great.” She said with a smile. 

He watched her closely, “That’s not that embarrassing. You’re holding something back.”

“You’re annoying.” She grumbled. 

He looked genuinely taken aback, “How? I’m just curious? Why are you getting so worked up?”

“Because you live with us!” She blurted. 

He flinched before freezing, “Wait, what?”

Her face burned red and she was glad the kitchen was so dark, “In my happy place, in that house where Lucy and I live with the plants and the cinnamon smell, you were living with us. Not as my bodyguard or whatever, you were just there.”

His mouth dried, “That made you happy?”

“Yeah. I didn’t have any problems in that life. I was happy.” She admitted. He stared at her mesmerized by the blush that he _knew_ was there, even if he couldn’t see it. It was hard to think that someone could feel that happy around him. He used to be the source of everyone’s problems and nightmares, it was surreal that now he was the source of someone’s happiness. 

The words left his mouth before he had the sense to pull them back and save them in his mind where he’s been keeping them this entire time.

“Fuck, I'm in love you.”

Her bowl clattered against the sink as it slipped out of her fingers. 

It was like a gust of air was knocked out of her lungs and was replaced with little sparks that ran up and down every vein in her body. She couldn’t have ever anticipated how good those words would sound out of Mark’s mouth. She had to let the silence hang over them to make sure that she hadn’t heard incorrectly or that he wasn’t about to laugh and say he was just kidding. 

But he didn’t do any of that. He just waited in that very same silence.

Wait. 

This was Mark Tuan, the man that wouldn’t kiss her in fear of rushing into things, who had the self-restraint of a tortoise but now he was telling her that he loved her? 

She slowly turned to face him with a frown and stared into his eyes, “Mark, what’s going on?”

“I know it doesn’t make sense now but I have to say it or else I’d regret it for the rest of my life. I love you.” He pled, almost like he was moments away from falling on his knees.

She gulped and it did nothing to soothe the sandpaper that made up his throat, “Wh-What?”

“You know that saying you can’t love anyone else until you learn to love yourself?” Mark said, his gaze a little unfocused like he was intoxicated. 

She felt her hands tremble and she quickly tangled her fingers together. “Yeah.”

“That’s a load of crap because I have hated myself for as long as I’ve held a gun in my hand but you, holy fuck, I have never loved someone as much as I love you. I almost forget to hate myself.”

“Oh my god.” She whispered, her eyes watering, it was like her brain finally caught up with what he had said. The truth sinking in, “You love me.”

“Yeah, I really fucking do. And I don’t need to hear it back, in fact, I think I prefer not to because I have no idea what’s going to happen tomorrow and I don’t think I’m entirely ready to hear what you have to say. But I’m selfish enough to want you to know how I feel.”

Her mind was spinning, “Why? What’s tomorrow?”

He shook his head and stepped closer to her, “Doesn’t matter. Not now. I just—I love you, baobei. I have for a while now. Everything about you and little Lucy. I don’t think I can give you everything you need in life but I feel human with you. Like I have a shot at life and I want that life with you. So there it is. I love you and I really want to kiss you.”

“Then do it.” She whispered, “Just kiss me because I’m tired of n—“

Before she could finish, he had his fingers in her hair and his lips against hers. Heiran took a sharp breath and a moment of shock stalled her until her eyes fell shut and she was meeting Mark’s mouth with just as much unbridled emotion. If he wouldn’t let her tell him that she loved him, she’d show him. 

He walked her back until she was pressed against the fridge. Heiran tilted her head and dug her fingers into the collar of his shirt, pulling him impossibly close. He reached out with one hand and yanked the door of the fridge open so that the light inside would wash over Heiran’s face. 

She shivered and pulled back to stare at him, a little annoyed that he was making her so cold, “What are you doing?”

“Needed to see your face.” He whispered, “Wanted to remember what you looked like when I kiss you.”

She softened immediately, like she was being surrounded by molten lava and not frigid air, “You’re going to have a lot of time to memorize what that looks like.”

His eyes dimmed a little but he just moved his face close enough to hover over her lips. He watched the way her breath hitched and her pupils dilated and wondered how big his ego would inflate if he got to see her react to him like this every day. 

“Why the fuck do you hang up paintings in your house? Just hang up massive pictures of you instead.” He muttered against her mouth. 

She laughed just as he kissed her, a smile plastered against his mouth. Every thought in her head evaporated as they kissed, the one thing she had been wanting for what felt like years. But she noticed something different than the last time they kissed. 

The last time, there was more fire behind the kiss as she led him up the stairs, but this time, that push was missing. He didn’t want to end up in her bed tonight, she could tell by how he held her hips and brought her away from the fridge. Instead of a savaging fire, there was kindling, little sparks flying from embers but keeping tame. But she took it all in greedily.

He lifted her up, his hands under her thighs and blindly walked her to the counter where he perched her on the edge. He braced his hands against the flimsy counter and groaned into her mouth, sharing long syrupy kisses as she dug her fingers into his hair and tugged sharply. 

Mark pulled away long enough to redirect his mouth to the length of her neck. She let out a loud sigh and tipped her head back while keeping herself anchored against him as he nipped and grazed his teeth along her sternum. A broken moan slipped out of her mouth when he flattened his tongue down the side of her neck. He smelled so familiar but without a scent that she could actually decipher. Kind of like when you walk through the door and your house just smells like _home._ Not like a particular food or candle, but just like home. 

His lips were soft and gentle, like petals dragging across her skin. She wanted to drown in this moment but before she could let it fully consume her, something gave her pause.

“Wait. Mark, wait.” She said while panting and pushing him back by the shoulders. 

He pulled away and rested his head against her forehead while trying to catch his breath, “What’s wrong?”

“It’s just—all this time you’ve been acting like kissing me would mean the end of us. What changed your mind?”

He screwed his eyes shut, trying not to let the euphoria drain out of his body at the harsh reminder of what was at stake and the reality of their future, “I realized that I’d rather our relationship crash and burn on our own terms than on your father’s.”

“One kiss isn’t going to make us crash and burn.” She breathed out. 

She leaned her head up so their noses bumped together and he let out a broken sigh, “Maybe, maybe not. But if we burn, I don’t want to leave behind any regrets and not kissing you is going to be a big regret.”

“Why do you keep doing that?” She asked softly, her voice weighed down in pain. “Why do you keep talking like something’s bad going to happen.”

His fingers slipped far up her shirt and pressed her tightly against his chest and swayed her slowly, “It doesn’t matter. But know that if anything bad ever happens, I’ll never let you or Lucy get hurt."

\-----

**_Months Earlier_ **

_"What the hell is wrong with you? Jackson nearly shot her!" His Boss snapped, his face burnt red._

_Mark kept his eyes trained on the ground, he knew he deserved this. It was his fault that Heiran ran to Youngjae, right in the line of Jackson's gunfire. He should've stopped her, forced her out of the building so that Jackson could complete his directive smoothly._

_"I'm sorry, sir." He said stiffly._

_He huffed and puffed and Mark wondered if he was going to blow the house in. "Because of her Youngjae is still alive and a huge risk. What is wrong with you? Why didn't you stop her?"_

_Mark's brow twitched, "I didn't know he was there on an assignment, if I had known, I wouldn't have let her get in the way or get hurt. But sir, it seemed that Youngjae got the message, he knew the bullet was meant for him, I think he'll be leaving Heiran's company alone especially because she saved him. He feels like he owes her now."_

_"That isn't the point!" He barked, "This shouldn't have happened in the first place. I don't have to tell you everything I'm doing, the second you saw Jackson, you should've done your job. Am I clear?"_

_Mark grit his teeth and nodded. There was no use in fighting it, "Yes, sir."_

_"What was she even thinking? Why would Heiran try to save the person who was trying to take her company down?"_

_Mark blinked, unaware that Yeonhee had stopped by their Boss's office, and paused for a minute in thought, "She's a good person. She has a conscious, even if that means putting herself in harm's way to protect someone else."_

_"How poetic, but a lot of good that'll do her when she's dead." He sneered._

_Mark's lips quirked as he turned, "I actually think it'll be what keeps her alive_ _."_

\-----

“Come to my room.” She whispered, her eyes looked like they carried little galaxies. 

He squeezed her waist, and breathed into her mouth, “Lucy’s sleeping there.”

“Then the couch.” She muttered.

He smiled and kissed her once more, smiling when she hummed the way people did when they tasted something sweet that hit the spot. He kissed her across her face, revelling at the sound of her giggles, a light and playful sound that he hadn’t heard from her before but he savoured. 

Finally, he took a step back, pulling his hands off of her for the first time, “You should go to sleep.”

Her lips parted and she stared at him dubiously, “Separately?”

“Yeah, baby girl.” He said with a laugh, “Separately.”

She pouted and he just leaned forward and kissed her throat, “I’m not going to have sex with you in a house full of people, including your ex.”

“Fair enough. But after. After all of this?” She asked.

His smile fell a fraction but he nodded, “After all of this, if you still want me, we’ll find the nicest bed, in a private room where we’ll have all the time in the world and you can be as loud as your heart desires and I’ll make all your dreams come true.”

She laughed and kissed him on the cheek before slipping off the counter and to hers and Lucy’s room. She stood by the door before looking at him. 

“And after you make my dreams come true, I’ll finally say those three words to you.”

\-----

4AM

That would be the time Mark would think about for the next 3 years. 

It was the time when everyone in the house was still asleep, he had only had his eyes closed for 2 hours himself. It was the time when he woke up, got changed, tucked the USB into his pocket and walked out of his room and walked into Heiran and Lucy’s. 

He tip-toed around to Lucy’s side and looked at her slumbering face, her forehead was creased and it looked like she had bags under her eyes. He hadn’t spent as much time with her than he used to and she had been so quiet lately, always sleeping. Being trapped indoors away from her friends and favourite activities had taken a toll on her. Being surrounded by adults who never told her what was happening, it would make any child miserable. 

But not for long. 

He brushed her hair off her face and leaned over to kiss the side of her head delicately, “Be good to your mom, you little monster.” 

Then he walked over to Heiran and felt the back of his eyes itch at the sight of her curled up under thin blankets that weren’t doing a good job keeping her warm. He got on his knees and ran his fingers through her hair and down her shoulder before kissing her on the forehead. 

“Please don’t hate me too much, baobei.”

\-----

When he closed the door to their bedroom behind him, he found Jaebum waiting for him with a solemn look on his face. 

“Ready?”

It was on the car ride that Jaebum asked the question that had been nagging on him, “Why do you call her Duchess? At first, I thought it was to tease her about being rich but you would’ve called her Princess. It’s more condescending. So, what’s the reason?”

Mark leaned his head against the window and listened to the easy jazz that flowed through the car speakers, “Ever watch the kids movie The Aristocats?”

“The one with the talking cats? Sure. What about it?” He asked.

Mark sighed, “The mother’s name was Duchess. She was refined, classy, and elegant. And she was fiercely protective of her kittens. When I first met Heiran she didn’t walk, she floated, and she was dressed in silk and expensive heels and the minute she thought I’d hurt Lucy, she threatened to kill me. She reminded me of her.”

“Doesn’t she fall in love with a scrappy alleycat from the wrong side of the tracks in the movie?” Jaebum asked with a smirk. “Is that supposed to be you?”

Mark rolled his eyes, “No, it’s not. That’s not why I call her that.”

“It’s cute. Didn’t think you had enough of a childhood to be referencing cartoon movies.” It wasn’t a mocking comment but rather the truth of what Mark’s childhood was made of. 

Mark blinked tiredly, “It’s the only children’s movie I ever saw.”

Jaebum stayed silent for the rest of the drive until they pulled up to the destination. He looked out the window before turning to Mark, “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“I have to.” Mark said as he undid his seatbelt. 

Jaebum shook his head in disbelief, “You’re a good guy, Mark. You always were. Better than me, that’s for sure. You’ve come a long way from the kid I met in DS’s headquarters.”

“You’re a good man too, you know.” Mark said. 

Jaebum gave him a dry smile, “I did one good thing after doing a lot of bad things. That doesn’t make me good. You have always tried to do the right thing, even when you couldn’t or when it's to your own detriment. And now you’re doing the right thing again to save Heiran and Lucy.”

“And to pay for all the wrong I’ve done.” Mark included. 

Jaebum nodded, “That too.”

“You remember what I told you, right? Everything that you need to do for her and me.” Mark asked. 

“Don’t worry, Jinyoung and I are ready.” He reassured. 

Mark took a deep breath, “That’s that, then. Here goes nothing.”

“Good luck, man.” Jaebum said quietly. 

Mark nodded sharply before getting out of the car and heading into the building. He walked around aimlessly in search of who he was looking for until he finally found the desk that was pushed into the back corner of the room with a little name placard set on the edge. 

_Kim Yugyeom_. 

When the young profiler looked up from his screen at Mark’s face, he immediately tensed and shot out of his seat, “What are you doing here? Where’s Heiran?”

“She’s safe.” Mark said quietly, but it was no use, all the other police officers in the room had looked over at the commotion. 

Yugyeom snarled, “Like hell she is, a GOT7 hitman has been inserting himself into her life for months. We’ve been trying to bring you in for an interview but now that you’re here, turn around, you’re under arrest.”

“Before you jump the gun and do that, don’t you want to know why a GOT7 hitman walked into a police precinct willingly? You know, considering I’m a person of interest.” He asked in disinterest. 

Yugyeom narrowed his eyes into a glare, “Fine. Why are you here?"

“I didn’t kill Jackson Wang.” Mark said simply. 

Yugyeom scoffed, “Great, thanks. Now turn around, hands behind your back.”

“However, I _did_ kill that executive of Heiran’s company under duress. The VP of Legal.” Mark finished. "You guys got that part right."

Yugyeom paused and blinked at Mark, taken aback, “You’re just admitting to killing someone? Why would you do that?”

Mark made it this far because his skills of self-preservation were unmatched. He always put his own safety and security first and he’d never do anything to jeopardize it. 

That’s why he was the right-hand man. 

You could trust a man who would do whatever it took to protect himself, even if it meant staying silent to what was going on around him. That’s how his old Boss built their relationship, on mutually-assured destruction. 

Give all your secrets to the one person who couldn’t annihilate you without annihilating himself. 

But mutually-assured destruction wasn't a threat to someone who was self-destructive. 

“Because I have information that you guys need, information that can take GOT7 and other very important people down.” Mark said with a smirk, watching Yugyeom back down. “And you’re going to give me a deal for it.” 


	36. Thirtysixth

For a space made of glass and steel, the interrogation room didn’t feel as cold as he thought it would be. Maybe because he didn’t come here to lie or deceive. Even though he was a criminal, he was on the side of the law for the first time.

He hadn’t spoken a word yet but he already felt a weight lifting off his shoulders.

“Mark Tuan, you have been a part of GOT7 for over a decade but you’ve been under the radar for most of it. What exactly is your role?”

Mark blinked at the detective across from him. He had assumed that Yugyeom would be involved but he had been quickly handed off to senior detectives. “Well, let me put it like this. You have a gun and I’m handcuffed to this table but I can still kill you more efficiently than you can kill me.”

The detective stiffened before scowling, “You said that you had information.”

“In exchange for a lesser sentence.” Mark added. 

He ignored him, “What does this information entail, exactly.”

“You’ll have my testimony about everything GOT7 is involved in, names, locations, addresses, supplies, allies, all of it. But I also have some recordings that tie my former Boss and some other high powered people to a human trafficking ring.” He said, his voice cold and calculating. 

The detective froze before lifting his head, “GOT7 doesn’t traffic. It’s a well-known fact.”

Mark smiled and it sent a shiver down everyone’s back, “Looks like you guys really need my help, then.” 

“And you have proof of all of this?” He asked suspiciously. 

Mark nodded, “Irrefutable proof. And a colleague of mine is sending in more as we speak.”

“All for a shorter sentence?” He asked. 

Mark leaned back in his chair, “My lawyer worked out the details when he got here but yeah. A shorter sentence. It also makes your lives easier because you didn’t have to track me down.”

“Don’t you want your lawyer in here with you?” The detective asked, “We want to make sure you know your rights.”

“Don’t worry about me. I know my rights. My lawyer is here just to negotiate my deal, everything else is between me and you.” Mark said, rhythmically tapping his fingers against the table.

“Why do all of this? 10 years is a long time to be loyal to someone, why are you flipping all of sudden? I mean, come on, you walked in here willingly, didn’t even try to run when you could’ve. Why?” He pressed.

Mark pursed his lips in thought, his eyes drifting to the ceiling, “I have debts I need to settle and sins to get off my chest, I figured that this was better than going to confession. I've never been particularly religious.” 

The detectives exchanged looks before flipping his notebook open, “Alright, start from the beginning.”

\-----

Silence ticked carefully as Jaebum and Heiran were locked in a standoff, staring at each other from across the room. 

When Heiran woke up to a suspiciously quiet apartment, she realized that everyone had gone out, leaving her and Lucy alone. When all their phones went to voicemail a nervous twist started to grow in her stomach. 

And when Jaebum came home alone a few hours later and dropped the bomb, that twist exploded and all Heiran could see was a smoky fog. 

“He…did what?” She spoke through tightly clenched teeth.

Jaebum watched her nervously, “He went to the police station to turn himself in.”

“Jaebum, I swear to god, this better be a sick joke. Tell me this is a joke.” Her tone was too low to be normal. 

He shook his head, “He told me and Jinyoung about his plan last night, he’s apparently been thinking about it for a while now. He made us promise not to tell you because he knew you’d never let him do it. He figured it was the only way to trap your dad. The one thing your father is sure of is that Mark would never sacrifice himself to take him down, which is exactly what he’s doing. He’s turning himself in and then giving the cops everything they need to know to take down GOT7. Your father will never see it coming and won’t have enough time to deploy a counter-attack.” 

“Let’s go. We’re bringing him back.” She ordered, moving to the door, but Jaebum stopped her. 

“It’s too late. He went in hours ago. There’s no getting him back.” He said softly. 

Tears welled in her eyes, “No. That’s ridiculous. There’s no way. This is all a misunderstanding. He wouldn’t just go to the police without telling me. They’d arrest him on the spot. He knows this. He’d never let them do it without a fight. This doesn’t make sense. You’re wrong.” 

“This is what he wants. Trust me, Jinyoung and I tried to change his mind, but he was dead set on it. As long as we were all too afraid to put ourselves on the line, your father would have the upper hand, he’d never see this coming.” Jaebum said quietly. 

“How could you let him leave the house! You should’ve just locked him in his room!” She yelled, shoving him. “They’ll never let him see the light of day! They can't take him from me. They’re just going to throw him in jail and throw away the key. My dad will probably escape before the cops can even get to him. Oh my god!”

Jaebum could only stand stoically as she pounded her fists into his chest as tears spilled down her face, “H-He can’t be gone. He would've said something. We have to stop him or get him out of there. We have to do something, anything! I can’t lose him! Please! I need him back. Please…what am I supposed to do now?”

“I’m sorry, Heiran. But he did this for you, to protect you and Lucy so you two could have a better life without always looking over your shoulders and hiding.” He whispered while holding her up. 

She sobbed against his chest, “He’s gone. I never even said goodbye. How could he do this to me?”

“Look.” He said sternly, pulling her off his chest and staring into her eyes, “For as long as I’ve known you you have always been able to pick yourself up by the bootstraps and move forward. You’re never down for too long, you always land on your feet. He has a good lawyer, he’ll cut a deal, he’ll serve a few years tops, and he’ll be back.”

She trembled and shook her head, “You don’t know that."

“You’ll get him back. So just focus on moving on with your life and starting fresh. He did this for you, so you and Lucy have a chance, don’t make it go to waste. Focus on your career and making up for everything you lost. And he’ll be at your door in the blink of an eye. Trust me, a few years behind bars is better than the rest of your lives hiding and running.” He said firmly.

She felt her knees give and sat down on the couch, “What about you? And DS?”

“I talked to Mark. I told him to do whatever gets him the best deal. If that means giving my name up, then I told him to do it. By the time the cops even know my name, I’ll be long gone, anyways.” He said with a reassuring smile. 

She frowned, “What?”

He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek, “You won’t be seeing me around anymore. I delivered a bunch of evidence to Yugyeom’s apartment, that was the last thing Mark asked me to do. I’ve made arrangements to go somewhere far with no extradition law and no winters. I think it’s time to do some travelling. DS will just have to make do without me, assuming the cops don’t crush it to dust first, which I’m kind of hoping they do.”

“I—I don’t understand. You’re leaving?” She asked, wide-eyed. 

"I think I'm long overdue a change of pace." He tucked her hair behind her ear, “I’m so sorry for coming back and causing you all this pain. I really hope you can find a way to be happier even though Mark is gone. I’ll always love you, Seo. And if you ever need anything, I’ll be a phone call away. Won’t change my number just for you.” 

“B-But, I’ll be all alone.” She whispered. A few months ago, the thought of being alone didn’t bother her too much. Sure, after a couple of glasses of wine she might get sentimental and emotional but for the most part, loneliness was something she was used to and preferred. All she needed in life was herself and Lucy. 

Mark changed that. Mark stormed into her life dragging Jinyoung, Yeonhee and Jaebum along with him and it was torturous at times but she was just now getting used to having them in her life. The constant noise and bickering was something she had grown to love. 

And now it was gone.

“Mark instructed Jinyoung specifically to not turn himself in. He told him to stay and help you with whatever you need to get you back on your feet. You won’t be alone.” He reassured, squeezing her shoulder.

She chewed on her lip in worry, “What’s he going to do?”

“Jinyoung is smart, he knows some of the GOT7 members and allies like Jae and Yeonhee who didn’t turn on Mark so he’s helping them escape before GOT7 gets raided by cops but the rest are being set up. He’ll be back after the raid to help you go home.” Jaebum explained, his tone gentle as if not to scare her. 

The tears started building, “But it won’t be the same.” 

Without Mark, it wouldn’t be the same. 

Not after he told me loved her.

“Mommy? What’s going on?” Lucy asked softly, walking up to her, concern on her little face. 

Jaebum looked away, ready to back up whatever lie Heiran was going to concoct to spare Lucy’s feelings. But Heiran just looked at Lucy with tear-filled eyes, “Mark’s gone, sunshine.”

Lucy looked confused, “When is he coming back?”

Heiran blinked away her tears, “I don’t know.”

She looked over at Jaebum who was apprehensive, he was seeing an idea form in Heiran’s mind and he already knew it would be a bad one. And that he couldn’t stop her. 

“But I’m going to find out.”

\-----

“Where is he?!” Heiran boomed as she stormed into the police precinct, her eyes searching around desperately. Everyone stopped and stared, sharing nervous looks as she plowed past all of their desks. 

“You better bring him out here, right now!” She yelled, kicking a garbage can over.

Yugyeom came racing out of an office with a severe look on his face, “What are you doing here?”

“You know why I’m here.” She seethed, “He didn’t do anything wrong, let him go.”

Yugyeom watched her in disbelief before squeezing his eyes shut for a moment, “Let’s go talk somewhere private.” 

She huffed angrily but let him lead her outside the building and to the side where there weren’t many officers around, “You can’t just barge into a police precinct yelling and screaming.”

“Are you joking?” She barked, “Mark is in there. I know he is and he shouldn’t be.”

His eyes were wide, “Heiran, he’s a killer. He’s a gang member and a murderer. He’s killed people for a living. No one deserves to be arrested more than him.”

“You don’t know him.” She hissed tears in her eyes.

The man standing in front of her wasn’t the happy-go-lucky freshman that had become her closest friend. Instead, she was standing in front of a serious officer of the law that saw things only as good and bad, black and white.

“I don’t need to know him, I just need to know what he’s done. And he’s done a lot of illegal shit. He admitted killing that VP whose body was found in that field, Heiran. He admitted to it. You worked with that guy. He was your colleague and Mark killed him. What more do I need to know?” He said, exasperated. 

Heiran shook her head, “He’s a good man, Yuggie. He did bad things, fine, but he’s a good person and he doesn’t deserve this.”

“Are you even listening to me? He killed people!”

“He killed criminals! He killed people who sold drugs and people.” She fought back. 

She hated the way he was looking at her, like he didn’t know who she was, “It’s not his job to decide who gets to live and die. He isn’t a vigilante, he’s a hired gun. He doesn’t kill people because they’re evil, he killed them because they got in GOT7’s way. And the Heiran I know would see that. She wouldn’t be defending a killer.” 

“Stop calling him that!” She screamed shoving him, “He’s more than that. He protected me and cared for me when I had no one!”

“Oh, I’m glad you brought that up. When were you going to tell me that your dad fucking ran GOT7, huh? Or was that something you were going to bury away with the fact that your personal assistant was a hitman?” He barked. 

She flinched and looked away, “It’s complicated.”

“Yeah, well, your friend is sitting in an interrogation room making it a lot less complicated for us.” Yugyeom said.

She looked at him worriedly, “What is he saying?”

“You know I can’t tell you that. But he’s helping us take your father down.” He watched the way she chewed on her lip and felt his shoulders fall, “Heiran what the hell happened? How did you get pulled into the middle of this?”

She kept her gaze low, “My father endangered me. His enemies came after me and Mark was protecting me.” She didn’t want to get into all the details of her and Jaebum. The best way for her to keep Mark safe would be to make sure she didn’t say anything that could contradict what he was telling the police.

“Why didn’t you just come to me? I’m a cop. I'm your friend.” He pled. 

She furrowed her brows, “I couldn’t just come to you. If I did, you’d go to your bosses and coworkers and I didn’t know who I could trust. The police are corrupt.”

“Heiran, why are you here?” He asked quietly, his eyes dark, brewing a storm that he was forcing down. 

She gave him an incredulous look, “What kind of question is that?”

“If he’s just the guy protecting you, you wouldn’t care what happened to him, you'd let the law take over. Especially since he works for your father of all people. But you’re here defending him, _crying_ for him. Please don’t tell me he really is your friend, now.” Yugyeom asked while scrunching up his nose. 

Heiran hesitated, looking away and his eyes widened, “God, please tell me you don’t have feelings for him.”

“It’s not that simple.”

“Oh my god, Heiran!” He exclaimed, stepping away from her, “Do you hear yourself? He’s a fucking gangster. He kills people, that's it, that's his only job, it's all he knows. He has no stability, no morals, no compassion, humanity or empathy, nothing to offer you. What the hell is wrong with you?”

She glared at him, her anger bubbling up, “Don’t you dare judge me. You don’t know anything about him or what I've gone through these last few months. He _does_ have morals and empathy and he’s offered me more than a lot of the people in my life.”

"Of all the fucking guys in the world." He muttered, "I bet I could find you a guy who could offer you all that stuff and more and he wouldn't be a murderer."

She glared, her anger rising, "I don't choose who I have feelings for. I can't just switch them off."

“Really? You really like him? You like him knowing that he’d basically be a father figure for Lucy? That’s who you want to help raise her? A criminal? A murderer? Wow. Seems like a great role model.” He sneered. "Superb parenting."

She shoved him back by the chest, “He’s been so good with her. Lucy adores him. You don't see how he treats her.”

“I wish you could hear yourself, right now. You have Stockholm Syndrome. He’s forced himself around you for so long that you’ve started to think you have genuine feelings for him and that he's some sort of antihero.” He said with a shake of his head. 

She scowled, “That’s an over-exaggeration. He didn’t kidnap me.” 

“But think back to when he first came into your life. I bet you hated him and everything he was a part of. What changed? Because he’s still the same person.” He growled. 

Heiran felt her bottom lip quiver when she thought about Mark and how he had become someone who she not only trusted but someone she also relied on. He supported her through everything that happened to her and never ran out of little things to do to make her feel cared for, “I got to know him and what a good person he was. You don’t need to feel the same way about him but you have to trust me when I say that he’s one of the best people I know. And I care about him a lot. He’s important to me and Lucy.”

Yugyeom just stared at her with a little shake of his head before his shoulders sagged, “Okay, let’s say that these _feelings_ are normal. What’s the game plan? He’s going away for at least a few years, even with a deal. Are you going to wait for him? You’re going to spend years just putting your life on hold and you have no idea if he’ll still feel the same way when he gets out. And when he _does_ get out, he has no skills to hold down a proper job. What are you going to do? Are you going to take care of him _and_ Lucy? Be his provider after what GOT7 did to you? And will you be okay just waiting? Letting life just pass you by as if _you’re_ the one with the sentence?”

“That’s not fair.” She whispered tearfully. 

He shook his head, “I love you, Heiran, but I can’t support you here. This isn’t realistic or sustainable. You won’t be happy, not in the long run. I can’t let you spend years of your life paying for someone else’s mistakes. You’ve already done that. You deserve to be happy.”

“And I’ll be happy with him. We can make it work. We’ll figure it out.” She said but she hated how she sounded. 

He blinked at her, “Did he tell you how he feels about you?”

“He told me he loves me.” She breathed out. 

He faltered a little, surprise in his eyes, “And you believe him?”

“Yugyeom.” She snarled, “He meant it.”

He looked at her apologetically, “But how can you be sure? He told you he loved you right before getting shipped off to jail. Guys like that, they’ll say what they think you need to hear so they can get what they want, so they can string you along for however long they deem you useful. You can’t put your life on pause for something that uncertain.”

“I didn’t ask for your opinion, Yugyeom. You don’t know him or what he’s like with me. All I’m here for is to make sure he doesn’t spend his life in prison for something my father made him do.” She said coldly. 

Yugyeom sighed in exhaustion, “I can’t make promises but it looks like he’s going to get a good deal but he can’t get out of doing jail time. We have no proof about his other kills but he admitted to killing the VP. Even if he was under duress he needs to do time. He needs to pay for what he’s done.”

 _He has_. She wanted to scream. 

Ever since his parents abandoned him, he had paid for it. But all she could do was look away and feel her heart break into tiny unfixable little pieces.

\-----

“Sir! Sir!” 

The Boss’s brow twitched as he lifted his head to see one of his men running in with panic written all over his face, “I’m busy, what is it? Make it quick.”

“I just heard back from my contact inside the precinct. Mark turned himself in, apparently, he’s talking.” 

He stiffened and for the first time since he started GOT7 he felt his stomach. “Are you sure?”

“Positive. And he said he has evidence. Whatever the CEO had hidden, Mark must’ve found it.”

He trembled, feeling his head spin. Of all the things he had expected he never thought Mark would ever do this. The Mark he knew would never give up his freedom for anything. That was the one thing he had as leverage. That’s why he had felt so safe. 

What the hell was going on? 

He could feel control slipping from his fingers. The man across from him coughed, “Sir, what should we do?”

The Boss stood and began shoving things into his bag and opening his safe to pull out the cash and passports he had hidden. “Get Yeonhee. Follow the plan, take everything down, don’t leave so much as a fingerprint behind. We’re dismantling.”

“Yeonhee didn’t come in today.” He said. 

He stiffened realizing that Yeonhee must’ve flipped, there was no other explanation, she must’ve known more than she let on. “Fuck. Whatever, leave her behind. Just go!”

The sound of sirens nearing sent him into action, opening the secret back door in his office and snuck out to the garage where he got into his car and sped away from the headquarters just as the police drove in the opposite direction, away from him. 

He smirked and slid his sunglasses up his nose. 

\-----

He pulled up to the private hanger where his private jet was waiting for him. He felt giddy as he parked his car and got out. 

Mark thought he was smarter than him, what a joke. 

He _made_ Mark, it was pathetic if he thought he could get one over on him. He was a fucking King, and Mark was nothing but a scapegoat. 

He hoped the traitor had fun in jail. He gave himself up to the cops and it was going to be in vain. He should’ve just taken the offer to come back to GOT7. Mark would always be a petulant child, it was a shame, he could’ve been something amazing. 

Oh well, while he spent the next 15 to 25 years looking at four cement walls, he’d be sipping wine in Venice. 

“Hi, father.” 

He froze midstep and looked up at his plane where Heiran was climbing out of the passenger seat. 

“Took you long enough. I waited for an hour, I didn’t think you’d be so slow.” She mocked. 

He felt his palms get sweaty, “How did you find this place?”

“I had some help, probably shouldn’t have assumed that your people would stay loyal to you.” She said with a dark look. 

Fuck. Yeonhee was helping her too now? How the hell didn’t he see that coming?

“What the hell do you want?” He growled. 

She walked up to him with a shrug, “I can’t exactly let you run away while Mark is with the police. I won’t let him sign away his life without making sure you follow him there.” 

“I’ll give you money. Is that it? Is that what you want? Is this because you lost your job?” He spat out impatiently. 

She pursed her lips and shook her head, “Nope. No ulterior motives. I just really fucking hate you and want to watch you suffer.”

His eye twitched, “Do you know what the worst day of my life was?”

“When mom died?” She said with a dry laugh, “I don’t want to hear your fake love story.”

He shook his head with a smile, “No. It was when your brother died.” 

“Why?” She said in confusion. 

He chuckled, “Because I wished you had died instead.” 

Heiran flinched as if she had been slapped, “Excuse me?”

“Your brother knew how to keep his mouth shut. He loved you and your mother too much. When he saw me leave in the middle of the night or spotted my guns, he said nothing. I knew he hated me but he never did anything about it. You, on the other hand, always asked questions, always shoved yourself in places you didn’t belong. It was infuriating.” He said. 

Her eyes widened, “He knew?”

“Of course, he was older, smarter. He figured it out. I guess he never said anything because he thought you’d all be better off without me but look how that turned out. They’re both dead and you’re broke and alone.” He smirked, “Imagine how good your life would’ve been if you just went along with everything. Instead, you brainwashed Mark to turn on me and look at the mess everyone’s in. Because of you.”

She fisted her hands, “Nice try. Mark didn’t flip on you because of me. He flipped because you betrayed him. And I’m going to make sure you get punished for it.”

“Really?” He asked before pulling a gun from his belt and pointing it at her, “How exactly are you going to do that?”

The sound of sirens neared and he looked over his shoulder where police cars careened into the hanger towards him. He turned to her in anger, “You dumb bitch.”

“Hmm, I prefer that to pumpkin.” She scoffed at the look on his face, “What? You thought I would come alone?”

He shot his hand out and grabbed her by the hair and pulled her in front of him, turning to face the cops with a gun to her head, “Don’t come closer or I’m taking her head off.”

Heiran winced, the pain spreading through her entire scalp. But the throbbing burn dulled when she felt the cold press of the gun against the base of her scalp. 

“Stay still.” He muttered in her ear, “Or else little Lucy’s going to be an orphan. Bet Johnny wouldn’t want his daughter abandoned again.”

She looked over at the crowd of cops all poised with their guns pointed at them. Yugyeom stood in front of them with a tensed face, his eyes filled with worry. 

“Put your gun down!” He yelled. 

Her father just laughed, “No. You’re going to put your guns down and let me get on this plane or you’ll have to watch your friend here, die.” 

Yugyeom looked at her before glancing at the detective that was standing next to him, waiting for his call. 

In the moment of indecision, an idea crossed her mind. The last time she was trapped like this, Mark had her pinned to the ground in a dingy gym and she had gotten creative to escape his hold. She wondered if it would work again. 

When Yugyeom glanced over at her, she made eye contact and clenched her teeth tight before snapped her head back with enough force that when it slammed into her father’s nose, it knocked him off balance. 

He groaned and stumbled back, letting go of her. She rushed out of his reach and the cops leapt into action. Yugyeom grabbed her and pulled her behind him as bullets flew. Heiran shut her eyes and when she opened them once the sounds ceased, she was surprised to see everyone alive although her father was being pinned to the ground with cuffs snapping around his wrists.

She stared, shocked, as he was lifted up. He looked over at her with a glare and Heiran stared back for a second. He wasn't her father or an intimidating, sociopathic crime lord.

He was just a pathetic weak old man about to face consequences for the first time in his life.

And then she started laughing.

\-----

**_Some time later._ **

If you asked Heiran if the trial was fast or drawn out, she couldn’t give you a straight answer. She hadn’t gone to court once to watch the proceedings. She wasn’t sure she could take it plus Yugyeom and Jinyoung had both advised her that it’d be suspicious if she was seen attending every day. 

Yugyeom managed to lie to avoid being tied to her father. With her help they made it seem like she had come to the hanger to inquire about renting a plane and became an unwitting and innocent hostage. 

She forced herself to stay off the computer and tv where the trial was being occasionally reported. But Jinyoung told her the highlights, that Mark had cut a deal, skipped trial, and agreed to a 3-year sentence for the murder of the VP. He gave them enough information that they were willing to cut shave time off his sentence and the VP who didn't just abuse the drugs he bought from Jackson but had also re-sold them at a higher rate, was an unsympathetic victim. 

Mark had implicated DS in Jackson’s death but said that he didn’t know DS’s real name and left the police with a sketch of Jaebum that looked nothing like Jaebum. 

All of DS’s properties were seized with a few of its members but the leader was nowhere to be found. 

The CEO and her father were both arrested and put on trial a long with multiple GOT7 members who hadn’t cut a deal. Others had got shorter sentences and some got probation based on the severity of their criminal activity. There were too many moving pieces that she was glad she wasn’t following the trial and heard everything condensed from Jinyoung. It all made her head spin.

Unfortunately, since Mark had settled on an agreement outside of court, she didn’t get a chance to see him even as a spectator. She had asked Jinyoung many times if Mark was planning on sneaking out or if he had something up his sleeve to get out of serving time. She was hung up on the idea that he wasn't allowing himself to be locked away for years that easily.

But each time Jinyoung said the same thing. 

_“He wants to do the time. He’s not exactly paying for every bad thing he’s ever done but he felt like he needed to do this. That if he wanted to be a better person, he had to face the consequences of his actions first. Trust me, we couldn't believe it either.”_

Her father, on the other hand, had a trial that lasted long enough for the jury to determine that he had committed so many vile crimes that he had to serve multiple life-sentences with no parole. His lawyers threatened the court with appeals but the judge just smugly told them they were within their rights to do so, probably prepared to strike down any attempt to alleviate his punishment. 

It was hard at first. 

To not see Mark’s face when she walked out the door, or see his name on her phone. She was angry, angry that he didn’t give her a proper good-bye. She was furious that he had the nerve to tell her he loved her knowing that he wasn’t going to see her for a long time. 

And she was _livid_ that he told her not to say it back. 

Because that was all she wanted to do now. If he was going to spend years behind bars, he deserved to know that she loved him so much. She loved him to the point that she could feel it physically embedded inside her. She had let love into her life because of him and he didn't even know it. 

Then it morphed into just missing him. His voice. His touch. His smile. His tattoos. She missed all of it. When Jinyoung helped her move back into her house, all she could think of was how his cologne still sort of lingered around. 

She spent so long in this house and it always felt comfortable and welcoming. But suddenly it felt too big. Where was Mark making coffee or watching Lucy do her homework or passed out on the couch waiting for Heiran to get home?

His absence was jarring. 

But Lucy handled it better than most, at least she thought so. Lucy was set on the fact that Mark would be back. Heiran didn’t say anything about jail but she told him he would be gone for at least 3 years, Lucy would just shrug and say that she would see him when he got back. 

When she practiced soccer she would say that by the time Mark came back she would be good enough to beat him. When she made her first batch of dumplings without her help she said that she couldn’t wait to let Mark try it. 

She wasn’t sure if she was in denial or really believed that Mark would come back to them. She handled it so much better than when Jaebum left, she didn’t know why, but at least one of them was managing better. 

Heiran struggled with acting like things were okay as she tried to fall back into a normal routine with Lucy. The nights were the worst, when Lucy was tucked in bed and Heiran was wide awake in her bed, sobbing softly into her pillows as her mind wandered to Mark, if he was safe or miserable and how she wished he was with her. She’d closed her eyes tight to try and remember what he tasted like and how his hands felt scorching around her bare skin. She'd remember how god damn _safe_ he made her feel and tried to let those memories comfort her. 

But soon days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months and although there was a constant pressure in the back of her brain made up of missing Mark and comparing every man that crossed her path to the standard that Mark had set, she began living her life. 

She stopped needing to pretend to be happy or as if things were normal. 

Over time, she found herself smiling at Lucy without forcing it or laughing with Yugyeom who made an effort to keep his opinions about Mark to himself. Eventually, when Jinyoung stopped by, she wasn’t filled with sadness and dread, soon they were sharing a bottle of wine talking about the new job he landed in private cyber-security. 

She was starting to feel like a real person.

\-----

Heiran sat in her old office across from the Vice President of her former company who looked stressed and anxious despite his attempt at smiling.

“Thank you for meeting with me, Ms. Seo. I wish it wasn’t during such a hectic time.” He said with a nervous laugh. 

She figured he meant the way the company was in shambles once the former CEO’s dealings went public and the Board was cleaning house, kicking everyone out and trying to salvage their plummeting reputation. 

“I have to say I was surprised to get your call.” She said, crossing her legs. 

He dabbed the sweat on his forehead, “Right, well I don’t want to waste your time so I’m going to be blunt. Firing you was a mistake. Obviously, the CEO had his own agenda when he removed you from the company to replace you with that…that criminal. You have always been such a strong performer and you should’ve never been terminated to begin with. After the truth came out about SmartLogic, we realized that you saved us and Samsung an even bigger lawsuit. For this company to repay you like that, it’s unthinkable.” 

She blinked at him, “I appreciate it. So what am I doing here? I’m sure you could’ve covered that in a phone call.”

“Ah, ever the straight shooter. Well, you see, you were such an asset to us that we wanted to meet with you and see if you would consider coming back to us.” 

Her lips parted, “You want me back?

“Y-Yes. I can see how the simple offer of your old position might be a little offensive considering how you were treated and the…state of the person who filled the role after you.” He said. 

She raised an eyebrow, “You’d be right. _If_ that was what you were offering me, I’d walk out without looking back.”

He gulped, “Which is why we want you to fill a different role. The one of CEO.”

“Wait…you want me to be the new CEO?” She asked, sitting up. 

He smiled, “Yes. We need your cutthroat leadership and we know that with someone with your talents and instinct, this company could do a complete 180. Even before all of the scandal, you had the qualities we wanted for CEO. Someone with fresh, innovative ideas with high standards. Quite frankly we would’ve asked you to step in earlier but the old CEO wasn’t ready to leave, kept saying you weren’t ready. I mean, it sorta makes sense now why he’d think that.”

She wanted to laugh, all the times he told her that he was going to make her CEO and take over the company he had been lying, just stringing her along and manipulating her to continue protecting the company while he helped GOT7. She had falsely believed she could climb the ladder to the top. 

Meanwhile, behind her back, he was telling everyone that she wasn’t ready. 

But now she was being offered everything she wanted solely on her own merit. 

“You’d obviously get a sizeable promotion, office, company car, you name it, it’s yours. What do you think?” He asked hopefully. 

She looked over at him with a smile, “That sounds wonderful.”

“Oh, thank go—“

“So, it’s a shame that I have to turn down the offer.” She said while standing. 

He stared at her in shocked, “W-wait. What? Why?”

“I’ve made a decision recently and I think that coming back here will undermine that decision. Plus, I’m not big on second chances. Your CEO wasn’t the only person who burned me, I won’t work somewhere that I’m not valued where people within my team are gunning for my failure. I appreciate the offer and I’m truly flattered, but I’m going to have to pass.”

He opened his mouth but she just turned on her blood red stilettos and strutted out of the door, shutting it behind her. She walked over to the desk placed outside the entrance where Eun was smiling at her from. 

“Ma’am! I can’t believe you’re back. I heard rumours that they were offering you the CEO position. Did they do it? Did you say yes? I can’t wait for you to come back, it’s been a disaster since you’ve been gone. I missed you so much, I’ve basically been crying in the bathroom ever since you left.” She chattered excitedly. 

Heiran smiled lightly, “I turned it down.”

The colour drained from Eun’s face, “You’re not serious.”

“Totally serious.” She said, her smile growing, “But Eun, I want to ask you something.”

Eun still looked devastated but nodded, “Sure, I guess.”

“I’m starting my own consulting firm. It’s still in the planning stages, I don’t have anything concrete yet but it’s going to be small, just myself, maybe one more consultant, and hopefully you for now. Would you consider coming with me once we get started up? You’ve always been so dedicated and lo—“

“Yes!” Eun blurted, “I’ll leave this shit hole right now, I don’t even care, I'll walk out. Wherever you’re going, take me with you.”

A laugh escaped Heiran, a feeling that she was starting to enjoy, “Okay well, you should stay here until everything’s up and running first but good. I’m glad to hear that. I’ll be in touch.” 

Heiran held her head high and walked through the halls that she used to treat like her castle walls. This used to be her kingdom, her stomping grounds, her dreams were written under every single windowsill. 

But all she could hear was the sound of her heels hitting the linoleum floors as she walked away from it all.

And it was music to her ears.


	37. Thirtyseventh

Yeonhee snapped her gum bored while watching Heiran pack things in boxes. She was seated on the edge of Heiran’s mattress after an out-of-the-blue call, “What am I doing here?”

“Can you pass me the tape?” Heiran asked from inside her closet. 

Yeonhee rolled her eyes and grabbed it off the bed and tossed it to her. This was the first time she had seen Heiran since left the four of them in her extra apartment hoping that GOT7 didn’t get to them. 

Too much had happened since then.

GOT7 and DS had been dissolved, Mark was serving a jail sentence and she was counting her lucky stars that she wasn’t serving a sentence herself. Part of her was glad that she wasn’t around to see the aftermath because according to Jinyoung it wasn’t pretty. Heiran had been a mess. A mess you couldn’t tell if you saw her because her hair was always washed. her makeup was perfect, her clothes were always neatly pressed. 

But it was in her eyes and the corners of her lips that never really curved up properly when she smiled, like a part of her soul was gone. Yeonhee hadn’t seen it herself but she thought Heiran looked better, more determined and driven. 

Heiran caught the tape roll and ripped a piece off with her teeth, “I called you over because I have an offer.”

“Whatever it is, no thanks.” Yeonhee deadpanned while checking her nails. 

Heiran raised a brow, “You don’t even want to hear it? Wow.”

“You realize that because of you I’m out of a job and most of the people I know are in jail, right? I used to make 6 figures. I’m not even making a fraction of that now.” Yeonhee muttered. If it didn’t put a dent into her savings, she would’ve been impressed with what Heiran accomplished.

Heiran stepped out of her closet and stood in front of Yeonhee, “I’m glad you brought that up. It’s not a 6 figure paycheque to be fair, but I want you to work for me.”

Yeonhee stared at her before laughing, “Nice one, I almost believed you.”

Heiran tucked a loose strand of hair back into her ponytail. “I'm not joking. I’m starting my own consulting firm, I have my business license and all the paperwork is in order. Sunshine Consulting is a legitimate business and I want you to work for me.”

She scoffed, “Doing what? Making you coffee?”

“Sure, if you want, but I was thinking more along the lines of being a business consultant.” Heiran said matter-a-factly.

Yeonheee shook her head, knocking her ankle against the base of the bed, “I don’t have a degree or know the first thing about how to run a business.”

"I know. You’ll have to learn, maybe even take a few courses online, I can help pay for it if you want. But when you were working as SmartLogic, you were good, sharp, you might have been fed what to tell me but you know how to deal with people, you handled an entire boardroom yourself. If you had hard facts and numbers to work off of, I think you could be phenomenal at telling people how to run their business to be more profitable.” Heiran said while crossing her arms, “The number side might be daunting at first but I think you’re a quick study, and with a few classes, you’d nail it. Plus I’m sure Jinyoung could always help you with the math stuff since you’re living with him now.”

Yeonhee snapped her head at her, the blush on her cheeks already betraying her, “How—“

“Jinyoung gets gossipy when he’s had a few glasses in him.” She said with a little smile.

Yeonhee looked away with a glare, “It’s just until I can afford my own place. He’s the one with a job, I’m just his roommate.”

“Hmm, well, either way, this is a serious offer, and maybe taking it can help you afford your own place, or at least a nicer place for the both of you.” 

Yeonhee stared up at her in disbelief, “Why are you doing this? I thought you hated me.”

Heiran sat down next to her, “I don’t hate you, don’t be silly. You can be childish, annoying, bratty, and rude but I don’t hate you. I think you’re smart, way smarter than you pretend to be. I always had a soft spot for Yuna, I think Yuna isn’t all too different to Yeonhee.”

“You’re seriously offering your boyfriend’s ex-hookup a job. A job where it’s only going to be me and you?” She asked incredulously. 

“Yeah, I am.”

Yeonhee’s awestruck look turned into a little smile, Heiran didn’t even deny the boyfriend comment, which, spending the last few months around her and Mark, was very unlike her. “Fine. But I’m not wearing a fucking pencil skirt.”

“What about blazers?” Heiran asked. 

“Only when I’m meeting clients.”

“Deal. Welcome aboard.” Heiran said while holding her hand out. Yeonhee shook it, letting go when Heiran stood and walked back to her closet. 

Yeonhee’s smile grew as she looked around at the now empty room, “You’re really leaving this place, huh?”

“Yeah, it’s too big for just the two of us and now that I have my own startup I can’t really afford it anymore. And I think I need a fresh start, there’s just too much hanging onto this place.”

\-----

6 months into his sentence, Heiran showed up on visitation day instead of Jinyoung. 

It took the entire 6 months for her to build up the courage and when she saw Mark walk into the room, she was glad she hadn’t waited for a second longer. The surprise was evident when he spotted her, his eyes growing wide and his jaw tightening. 

Once his cuffs were undone, he sat down across from her, studying her face. She took the time to do the same, fighting off the pain in her chest when she noticed how his face looked thinner and she swore he walked in with a limp. But seeing him after so long felt like a rush. His hair had grown out a little and the rest of his demeanour just seemed more fatigued and tensed. 

“What are you doing here?”

His voice stayed the same though. 

Rough, warm, strong. 

“Visiting you.” She said softly. “How are you holding up?”

The ice covering his eyes started to thaw, “I’m fine, duchess.”

“You’re in jail.” She deadpanned. 

His lips twitched and it was like something hard cracked to reveal a softer inside, “I’m fine for someone who’s in jail. Turns out being in a gang gets you street-cred, people don't really try to pick fights with me.”

She nodded but her eyes seemed distracted like she was holding something back. She just pressed her lips together before shaking her head in despair.

“I hate you.” She whispered, “Why didn’t you tell me what you were going to do?”

He paused, blinking at her in surprise before speaking, “I’m sure Jaebum told you why.”

“I want to hear it from you. From the man who said he loves me.” Her voice cracked, the only indication that she was near tears. 

He scanned her face and reached out, lacing his fingers with hers. She shivered at the sensation, after being deprived of his touch for long, it was so nice to finally feel him, “I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want to see your face when I told you.” 

She gulped and dropped her gaze, squeezing his hands. He brushed his thumb over her knuckles, “You look good, baobei."

A sob escaped her and she shut her eyes willing her emotions to stop. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. You didn't do anything wrong.” He whispered, “It’s okay. I’m okay.”

She opened her eyes and forced the tension out of her shoulders, “Do you need anything?”

“Just wanna look at you, how do you manage to look even prettier?” He said with a smile that he put on just for her, “It’s been some time, huh?”

She nodded, “But everything you did paid off. This stupid, idiotic, selfless plan worked.”

“I’m glad.” He murmured. “I hear your business is doing well.”

Her eyes widened, “You know?”

“Jinyoung is good at finding creative ways to bring you up when he’s here.” He said teasingly. 

She smiled weakly, “It’s going well, we’re just starting and a few clients followed me out of my old company. BamBam helped us get off the ground, he was a godsend. Yeonhee’s doing well too, it’s a learning curve but I think she’s excited.”

“Did you hear they’re living together?” He asked in an attempt to distract her. 

She nodded with a half-smile, “I know, I think they’re dating but they don’t want to tell anyone.” 

“I was thinking the same thing.” He said. He sighed and squeezed her hands. Somewhere along the way, he had found the family he had been desperately searching for his entire life. Even if it was for a short while, Lucy and Heiran would always be a part of him, “I missed you.”

Her grin fell and she wished she could get closer, “I miss you too. So does Lucy.”

“How is she?” He asked curiously. 

“She's ready to beat you in a game of soccer, better watch out.” She teased. 

He smiled and almost looked relieved, “I’m glad things are going well for you, I’m serious.”

“Would be better if you were around.” She said quietly. 

He shook his head, “Don’t worry about me. I’m fine. Just focus on your life, your future. You’re doing the right thing with this new business and Lucy. Keep going, duchess. Don’t look back.”

After that day, she had gone to visit Mark every week. They’d fill the 45 minutes with stories, mainly from Heiran, he didn’t like talking about what his week was like. He just smiled with a sad look in his eyes when she’d tell him about Lucy and her new company. It was going well and they started to build a new sense of normal until the 4th time she went to visit him. 

She was immobile when Mark walked in with a black eye, his lip split and a bruise on his cheekbone. Her eyes never left his face when he sat down across from her but he refused to look at her. 

“What happened?” She breathed out. 

His brows furrowed, “A fight.”

“Does it hurt?” She asked shakingly. 

He shut his eyes for a second before lifting his head to stare at her, “Why do you keep coming to see me?”

“W-What? What do you mean? It’s because I want to see you and talk to you.” She was taken aback by the hard glare he gave her. She could feel her vision blur, she hadn’t realized how fast the tears were building. 

He just tensed his jaw, “Don’t you have a business to run? A daughter to raise? How do you have time to drive up here every week?”

“B-Because I want to. I make the time because I miss you and want to hear your voice.” Her own voice cracked and the tips of her fingers started to feel cold, she wasn’t used to this tone from him. “Seeing you makes me feel better.”

“Well, has it ever crossed your mind that seeing you makes me feel like shit? And every time I walk in here it hurts watching you pretend like you weren’t just crying? Visitation days are miserable for me ever since you started coming.” He rasped out. 

She pressed her fingers against her eyes, “Why?”

“Because no matter what I tell you or how being here is what I deserve, I’d rather be with you. I’d be anywhere but here and when you come in here it just reminds me of what I’m missing out on and it’s the worst feeling in the world.” His voice was stiff that it felt like every bone in her body was breaking. 

“I’m sorry.” She said meekly. She wanted to beg him to not do this to her, to plead him not to take himself away from her because she wasn’t ready to let him go. But that would selfish.

He shook his head, “Just stop coming, I don’t want to see you, it’s too much. You shouldn’t even be here anyways, just go and live your life, stop staying stuck in the past by coming to see me. Don’t waste your time with me anymore. You’re starting fresh, clean, without GOT7 or your dad meddling in your life. Keep it that way. Please.”

She frowned, “Wait, are you telling me not to see you because it hurts you or because you think I’m better off severing ties with you?”

He just stared at her as if he was memorizing her face for the last time, “Don’t come back, baobei. Just do me this favour and move on.”

She opened her mouth to protest but he called to return to his cell and she could only watch as a guard led him away from her. 

Heiran came back to visitation 4 times after that and each time, she’d wait at the same table and each time a guard would come and awkwardly tell her that the prisoner didn’t want to see her. Still, she’d wait the entire 45 minutes before driving home. 

On the 5th time, Mark waited in his cell, laying on his back staring at the ceiling. The bruising had healed up without a single scar, but the guy who had started the fight with him was still nursing his wounds but Mark didn’t care. People knew they couldn't win a fight against him now. 

The problem was that he felt worthless sitting across from Heiran. A convicted felon who was getting into fights. That wasn’t the type of man he wanted to be for Heiran and it wasn’t the type of man she deserved. The pained look on her face when she had seen his bruises made him sick. And the thought that the other guy had it worse didn’t help ease the ache. He used to feel like maybe he could be good enough for her like maybe things would work out. 

But when the medic pressed cotton pads to his lip, he knew he had been living in a delusional fantasy.

It was better to just not see her at all.

Just because he turned himself in and put her father away, didn’t mean that he was suddenly a person deserving of Heiran’s love and attention. 

Maybe if he didn’t see her he could forget what she looked like, what she felt like, what she sounded like and what she made him feel. Maybe with time, he could feel nothing when he saw her and maybe she’d find someone else and forget him. 

The truth was they wouldn’t have ended up together if they weren’t forced into each other’s lives. They spent weeks trapped away from the world. 

But on the 5th week when the guard had come by to tell him that he didn’t have a visitor this week, a part of him felt sad even though this was what he wanted. 

It meant that it was truly over. 

And he needed to be happy for her.

\-----

**_2.5 Years Later_ **

“Lucy! Hurry up, you’re going to be late to your cello lessons.” Heiran called while putting a bunch of papers away into the filing cabinet next to her table. 

Working out of her apartment seemed like a smart idea at first but Sunshine Consulting had been growing at a steady rate, as was the human sunshine that was dragging an instrument twice her size across the living room. 

At this rate, they’d need to start looking at something bigger or maybe she’d finally look for an office space. But these were things to think about for another time. Right now she had to drive her daughter across town. 

“Ready?” She asked, grabbing a tumbler of coffee off the counter and a bag of snacks that she slipped into Lucy’s bag when she hobbled towards her. 

Lucy propped the instrument up and let out a heavy breath, “Thank god this place has an elevator.”

“I would like to remind you that the viola exists and was an option you rejected.” Heiran tutted while they slipped on their shoes. 

She shook her head, “It’s too small. Nothing’s more rock and roll than this bad boy."

Lucy followed her mother down the hall as they waited for the elevator to come up. “I can’t wait until you go back to your painting phase. That was nice.”

“Is it because I was good at it or because it was my only quiet hobby?” Lucy asked as they stepped in. 

Heiran laughed and ruffled her hair, “Can I say both?”

“Oh, just wait until I get into the electric guitar.” Lucy threatened. “Yugyeom said he’d teach me how to play it.”

Heiran grimaced, she and Yugyeom had quickly mended things after their fight outside the precinct. Although to this day, he didn’t understand her relationship with Mark, he had given her the space to cycle through her emotions without judgement, “We might really have to move if you start playing that.”

“You think Yeonhee would quit if she had to hear me practice every day?” Lucy asked. 

Lucy and Yeonhee’s friendship had surprised Heiran. They bonded pretty quickly, but not in the sarcastic bickering way she would’ve guessed. Instead, Yeonhee had sweetened up on Lucy pretty fast and there would be times when Heiran would walk into the little room that she designated as an office to find Yeonhee on her computer doing work while chatting casually with Lucy about boy problems.

She realized that Yeonhee was the 'cool-aunt' to Lucy, the same role she had thought she'd be playing when Johnny and his wife were alive. That didn't bother her as much as it should've. She was just glad that Lucy had so many people in her life who loved her.

But the one thing that tested Yeonhee's love was the instruments that Lucy insisted on learning. When the cello phase started Yeonhee had expensed a pair of earplugs. 

“If you scare Yeonhee away, I’ll ban instruments from the apartment.” Heiran jokingly threatened. She had become a better consultant than most of the professional who Heiran knew that spent years in schooling. Yeonhee was a natural talent. 

And spending nearly 3 years together had turned Yeonhee and her from coworkers to best friends. She didn’t think either of them saw it coming because it had been rocky working together at first but they respected each other enough. In time, working silently in the same room had turned to banter and laughter over the sound of keyboards clacking. Now they were each other’s closest confidant. 

“Jinyoung wouldn’t let her leave, though.” Lucy pointed out as they exited the elevator and heading to the car. 

After months of shy back and forth and Yeonhee talking Heiran’s ear off about her problems, the two of them had finally started dating, their first year together just passing a few weeks ago. 

It felt like everything around her was falling into place. 

She checked the date on her phone and sighed. 

Almost everything. 

1 more month.

\-----

Jinyoung was fiddling with his phone, smiling at a text his girlfriend, yes it still sounded unreal to him after all this time, his girlfriend sent him.

He was leaning against his car, sending a reply off to Yeonhee when the sounds of creaky metal doors pulled his attention off his phone. He looked up and smiled, his heart blooming as he watched Mark walk towards him. 

“You looked better in grey.” Jinyoung teased as he hugged his friend. 

Mark rolled his eyes but hugged Jinyoung tightly, “Yeah well, trust me when I say you’ll never see me in that again.”

They pulled apart and he beamed, “It’s so good to see you.”

“Back at you.” Mark said with a grin. 

A little under 3 years and Mark’s sentence was suspended due to overcrowding. Jinyoung had nearly tackled Yeonhee off her feet when he got the call from Mark informing him of his release date that was now pushed up. 

They got into Jinyoung’s car and he got a little emotional when he watched Mark close his eyes, take a deep breath before fulling sinking into the soft leather seats. He knew how soul-sucking prison could be, 3 years wasn't the longest sentence but still enough to drain everything out of you.

“Where to first? Food? We can do a tour of every single restaurant you’ve been missing for the last 3 years. Or we can go to the bar, see how it’s doing, Jae’s been doing a really good job promoting it.” Jinyoung suggested as he pulled onto the road. 

Mark hummed, “Honestly, that all sounds great but I just want to sleep on a bed with an actual mattress. Did you manage to find me somewhere to live?”

“Yeah, I found an apartment unit on the nice side of town, it’s a pretty good price and spacious. I got some essentials moved in but we still to buy some stuff.” He said as he headed to the apartment complex. 

Mark watched the road signs, “Why’d you pick a place here? Wouldn’t it be easier to just move somewhere closer to you?” 

“Uh, yeah but me and Yeonhee are moving soon, I don’t want you to move into our building only for us to leave it after a while. Might as well set you up somewhere comfortable.” He said. 

Mark smiled lightly, “Thanks…and the other thing, did you manage you get it done?”

“Finishing touches went up yesterday. It’s all set.” He said as he drove, “I didn’t think we’d be able to pull it off but it looks really nice.”

“Good.” Satisfied, Mark closed his eyes and fell asleep the rest of the drive. 

\-----

Jinyoung had walked him up to the unit and helped him in. He wasn’t lying when he said that he only got the essentials in. There was a bed, a dresser and appliances in the kitchen but not much else. 

However, Mark couldn’t care less once he spotted the bed with a thick mattress and fluffy blankets. 

“Not bad, right? It’s got a great view too. The rest of your stuff is in a storage unit, we salvaged most of it from your apartment before the cops got to it. We’ve been keeping Nemo alive so don’t worry.” Jinyoung said while giving Mark the key to his place. 

Mark was already climbing under the covers, “That sounds great, we’ll talk about the details tomorrow.”

Jinyoung snickered when Mark pulled the blankets up to his chin, “Alright I’ll get out of your hair but if you need anything give me a call or ask your neighbours…they’re a nice family, I met them myself.” 

“Mmmhmm.” Mark sighed. Jinyoung turned to the door when Mark’s quiet voice stopped him. “How is she? Do you know?”

He looked over at him, his eyes were open and looking for answers. He was surprised it took Mark so long to finally bring her up, “She’s doing well. She’s happy but if you want to know anything else, you should call her and ask her yourself. She kept her number and she doesn’t know you’ve been released.”

Mark said nothing and just turned on his side, closing his eyes as Jinyoung let himself out of the apartment. He locked the door behind him before turning and staring at the unit across from Mark’s. 

He hoped this wasn’t a mistake.

\-----

Mark woke up in was late in the evening and his stomach growled. Rolling out of bed he stretched his arms over his head and revelled in how much of a difference a good mattress could have on his back. 

He rolled his shoulders before moving to the kitchen in search of some food and found that the fridge and cabinets were empty. He called Jinyoung and frowned when it went to voicemail. He couldn’t order anything in because Jinyoung was holding onto his credit cards and the bank accounts. The plan was to get everything transferred over to him tomorrow. 

What the hell was he going to do for food? 

He glanced nervously at his door, remembering what Jinyoung had said about the family across the hall. He looked down at his arms before pulling on a sweater to cover his tattoos in an attempt to appear less intimidating. 

Reluctantly, he stood in front of his neighbour’s door, taking a few breaths before knocking a few times. He peered up at the peephole and wondered if they’d open the door to him. He was a new face after all. 

He heard the sound of footsteps move towards the door and then silence. He wondered if they were waiting for him to leave so he cleared his throat, “Hi, um, I moved in across the hall I was wondering if y—“

The door swung open and he stepped back in surprise until his eyes landed on the woman on the other side. 

“You.”

Her hair was shorter, it fell a little past her collarbones and it made her seem more youthful. He had the insane urge to run his fingers through it, to collect it into a ponytail in his fist and bring her close. His eyes raced over the rest of her face, soaking in what time had caused him to miss. 

It had been over 2 years but she didn’t look older. She looked exactly like how he remembered her. 

Beautiful. 

He was an idiot if he ever thought those feelings would fade with time because with one look at her everything he thought was gone had rushed back in full force.

Heiran had her finger pointing at him but the rest of her was frozen in shock, “You.”

His eyes were wide, “Me. I mean—no, wait.”

“Is…is this real?” She whispered. 

He wondered if this meant that she dreamed of him before. Or maybe she thought of them as nightmares. “Yeah. I’m here. This is real.”

“How?” She asked, stunned, “Better yet, when? You had one more month left.”

He gulped, she had still counted down, “Today. They let me out early.” 

She just blinked at him, her eyes darting around his face. He bit down on his lip nervously before speaking, “I didn’t know you lived here. I think Jinyoung did this on purpose, he picked this place. I can move out tomorrow. I’m so sorry.”

“Come in.” She whispered. 

He winced, “I don’t know if tha—“

“Come in.” She said angrier. 

He held his breath and followed her in when she walked away leaving the door open. He shut it behind him before looking around her space and felt the urge to smile. It was so different from her old house but it was exactly like her. 

She replaced classic paintings with abstract unique art. Everything was warm earth tones, welcoming and soft instead of the crisp marble and white that decorated her last home. He could see papers strewn across the dining room table and he figured he had interrupted her while she was working. 

He could see Lucy in the space as well, her toys, books and shoes were scattered through the living room. He figured the door with the wooden sun hanging on the handle was her bedroom. When he finished scanning her unit his eyes landed back on her to find her watching him carefully. 

“I hope those last 2 years in jail sucked.” She said blankly. 

He knew she was livid but he fought back a smile, fuck he missed her like hell, “They did.”

“I hope they sucked because of me.” She continued. 

His smile slipped out this time, “They did.”

“How can you smile?!” She barked, he was sure if she was standing in the living she would’ve grabbed something to chuck at his head. His lips fell, the mirth gone. “2 years, Mark. You kicked me out of your life for 2 years and you just show up at my door. I don’t care that Jinyoung tricked you, you’re here now after so long. How the fuck is that supposed to make me feel?”

He said nothing, just hovering near the door while she sat on the couch, twisting her body to face him, “You told me you loved me, then you disappeared to make a huge sacrifice without asking me first. And when I tried to see you, you pushed me away and basically told me to fuck off without you.” 

“And it worked didn’t it?” He finally fired back, “Look at your life. You have a new apartment, new business, you seem happier, lighter. You’re achieving the same dreams that I helped crush. You did so much good with your fresh start. You think you could have all this if you spent 2 years weighed down by me? ”

She looked offended, “You think that you being in jail was a burden to me? You realize that if it wasn’t you, it might’ve been me. I could’ve been the one behind bars. I wanted to be there for you, I wanted to see you because I knew that if I was the one in prison, I would want to see you every chance I got. I didn't want a fucking new start. Not without you.”

He shook his head, “And I made sure you _wouldn’t_ end up behind bars. I didn’t need you walking into that shithole over and over again. I didn’t need your new clients to find out the person handling their company was making regular visits to prison. I didn’t need you trying to look like it didn’t hurt you when I walked in beat up because guess what, it happened a dozen times after that. And I didn’t need to see you feeling helpless. So yeah, I pushed you away so you could have a normal life and guess what, I don’t regret it. I’d do it again.”

She was trembling in anger but she just levelled him with a stare, “You’re so selfish, did it occur to you to think about what I wanted? You decided what was good for me, what you thought I needed without taking a fucking moment to consider what I was _desperate_ for. Well, it doesn’t matter now, if you think I’ve held onto my feelings for you, you’re wrong. I’ve moved on, just like you told me to. I’ve been with plenty of men, men better than you.”

“Good.” He snapped back. “If you think that you’re going to get a rise out of me, you’re wrong. This is exactly what I wanted to happen.”

She stood with her fists at her side, “Great, no complaints here. Glad it all worked out according to plan. I haven’t thought about you once since I stopped visiting you.” 

He scoffed, “Yeah? Well, I stopped…”

Her brow twitched when his voice trailed off, “Go on and say it, say that you stopped loving me. I know you want to.”

He just glared at her like he hated being called out, “You know what’s sick? I’ve said _I’m sorry_ to you more times than I’ve told you I loved you.”

Heiran’s eyes widened and she opened her mouth but nothing came out. 

He looked away and shifted topics, “Can I borrow an egg? My fridge is empty.” 

Her jaw ticked but she just stormed into the kitchen, ripped her fridge open before taking out one egg and a plastic container. She shoved it into his hands, “It’s leftover rice, you probably don’t have anything to eat the egg with. Take it and keep the container, I don’t want it back.”

“Fine. Thanks.” He grumbled, turning to the door, “And I’ll move out by the end of the day tomorrow. You won’t have to see me ever again.” 

She said nothing as he walked out of her apartment and back into his. 

So much for heartfelt reunions. 

\-----

Mark ate alone by his kitchen counter and his head pounded the entire time. He wished he didn’t knock on the door. 

He hoped to never have to see her again because he knew it would hurt exactly like it did right now. Pushing someone away, telling them you didn’t want to see them was easy when you were in prison with nowhere to go. But running into her like this was a nightmare. 

_“I’ve been with plenty of men, men better than you.”_

He hoped they were better than him, he hoped they made her happy. 

After losing his appetite halfway through his meal, he grabbed his phone and headed out the door. He needed to get some fresh air and figure out where he was going to live now because there was no way he was going to live across from her where he’d have to see her every day. He stood by the elevators, dialling his number and while it rang, the doors opened. He was about to step in when he met eyes with Lucy. 

Her eyes widened and the giant instrument she was holding nearly tumbled out of her hands when Mark caught it before it hit the ground. 

They just stared at each in silence. While Heiran had looked the same, Lucy had looked much different, 2 years had aged her quickly. She didn’t look like the little twerp that followed him around, she was having a bit of a growth spurt, her limbs gangly to match her height. 

The elevators started to close on her and he shot his hand out to stop them from crushing her. That snapped her out of her daze and she stepped out of the way. He brushed past her to get into the elevator. 

But before he could slam his finger down on the close button, Lucy called out to him. “Are you good at fractions?”

\-----

When Heiran came back from her walk, she felt her head still spinning. She had spent 30 minutes yelling at Yeonhee, expelling her anger at Mark out on her friend who could only listen helplessly as she complained about the sheer audacity of the man who showed up. 

What right did he have to be handsome and wonderful after forcing her to live 2 lonely years without him? And what right did her heart have to betray her like that the minute she saw him?

By the end of her conversation, the tip of her nose was frozen and her anger drained into sadness. Because despite it all, she missed him. And she wished she didn’t yell at him. She wished she just hugged him like she wanted to. She didn’t want him to move out, in fact, she wanted him next to her in bed so she could finally get a good night’s rest. 

When she opened the door, the first thing to startle her was Jinyoung’s voice crackling through the room. 

“No, Lucy, if you’re adding two fractions with different denominators, you need to multiply them to find the common denominator.” 

The next thing that startled her was Mark sitting at her kitchen table with Lucy next to him, her math workbook spread out in front of them with Jinyoung’s face on his phone. 

“What’s happening?” She asked. 

Mark’s head jerked up to see Heiran shooting lasers at him, “I—uh—“

“Lucy needed homework help. Mark and I came to her rescue. You're welcome, by the way.” Jinyoung called out. 

Heiran stomped over to the table and grabbed the phone before hissing into it, “I’m pissed at you too, don’t act innocent, I’ll deal with you later.” 

She hung up the call and handed it back to Mark who took it before standing, “I should go.”

Lucy’s reaction to his departure nearly broke her heart, she lurched towards him, like she wanted to grab onto his arm and make him stay but she stopped herself. She looked at Heiran to gauge her expression like she was worried that it would upset her that she missed Mark. 

“I’m making dinner soon.” Heiran said quietly, “You might as well stay, it’s not like you have anything to eat anyways.”

Mark licked his lips nervously, glancing between her and Lucy, “Duchess, I—“

“Stay.” She whispered, shutting her eyes when the nickname she hadn’t heard in ages made a reappearance. It weakened any resolve she had left and brought back feelings she was sure she could live without. She had spent years resenting Mark and building up her walls so that when he came back into her life, he wouldn't be able to get through to her. 

She put so much effort into thickening up her skin and in a second, it had melted away.

All it took was that one word. 

And she was his.


	38. Thirtyeighth

Mark stood next to Heiran as they silently worked on putting together a meal while Lucy did her homework in front of the television. 

Even though they spent so much time apart, they still managed to work next to each other without needing to speak. They somehow could be in a small space with each other without sharing a single word. Instead communicating through knowing each other's body language and personality. 

It wasn’t until she was frying the vegetables that a splatter of oil flying towards her had her stepping back, her heel catching water that had spilled on the floor. Before a gasp could leave her mouth, Mark’s hands caught her waist, stabilizing her. 

“Are you okay?” He asked, worried. 

She stiffened in his hold and he let go, putting space between them. She cleared her throat, “I’m fine.” 

He watched her for a beat, his eyes pained but did nothing to put his hands back on her, already missing her heat. The silence continued as they went back to working on the food it went on like that until they started moving things onto the table. When Mark reached a hand across to set down plates, a loud crash had him spinning around. 

Heiran was staring at his arm with wide eyes, the cutlery she was holding was now by her feet, “What the hell is that?”

She pointed to his arm and he followed her finger until he was staring at the tattoo on his inner arm. 

One, in neat typewriter-style font, that spelled out a single word. 

D U C H E S S 

Mark pulled his sleeve down and turned away, “Nothing. It’s nothing.”

“Did you get that in pri—when you were gone?” She asked, eyeing Lucy.

“Doesn’t matter.” He replied stiffly, bending down to pick up what she had dropped. 

Her hands shook, “Did you get that before or after you told me to stop visiting?”

“I said it doesn’t matter.” He repeated. 

She crouched down in front of him and cupped his face, tilting it up so that she looked into his eyes, “It matters to me. A lot.”

It mattered to her because if he got that tattoo after he made her leave, it meant that he still wanted her around, he wanted the reminder of her permanently because he wasn't ready to let go. And maybe he wanted her to keep coming back even when he said he didn't.

It mattered to her because even if she was angry at him and he was frustrated at her, they both still wanted the same thing. 

Each other.

He searched her eyes but said nothing, she could see the hardness in his eyes dimming. She kept one hand on his face and the other drifted back to his arm and he let her push the sleeve of his sweater up until she could see the letters again. She let out a stuttering breath, “Oh my god.”

“It doesn’t mea—“

"Mark, please." She whispered, her hands gently smoothing across his cheeks. 

He gulped and kept her stare, "After."

“Don’t move out.” She whispered and he knew then, that there was never any hope for him. This was it. She owned him, he was at her mercy. And frankly, he didn't want it any other way.

He wanted this moment, the way she looked at him like she needed him even though time passed and emotions faded. 

That’s all he wanted.

\-----

Steps were slow. 

They didn’t reunite with dramatic declarations of love or romantic grand proposals. 

When she told him not to move out, he didn’t. That was the first step. 

Then they spent time living their own lives, treating each other like regular neighbours who would just smile and greet each other when they passed by. After a while, he came over for coffee a few times and once for wine. Then when Lucy twisted her ankle, he helped her carry her cello around. 

It got hard when he started running the bar full time. He often worked nights and was dead to the world in the mornings. Meanwhile, Heiran worked in the day and sometimes into the night before passing out on whichever surface she hit first.

But Mark would open his door ready to leave for work around 7PM and find a travel mug of coffee outside his door. Or Heiran would rush to leave for a last-minute meeting to find the ice had already been scrapped off of her car windows.

This was their love language when they weren’t ready to speak. This was their version of holding hands or shy kisses. It was him sliding her mail under her door or her hanging an umbrella on his doorknob when there was a downpour. 

But when they'd run into each other in person, they’d never acknowledge the acts of kindness. 

Not until Mark did one that knocked her off her feet. 

She had mentioned it in passing one day when they shared an elevator the way neighbours do. She had said that she thought she and Lucy were growing out of their apartment since the business was operating out of it as well. It was just polite small talk because she needed to distract herself from the overwhelming urge to slam on the emergency stop button and wrap herself around him. 

But Mark hung onto that piece of information for a week before the weekend rolled back around. He knocked on her door early in the morning and bit down on the laugh bubbling in his chest when she opened the door with messy hair and a scathing glare. “It’s 7AM.”

“I know, turns out I’m an early riser.” He said while holding two cups of coffee. 

She scoffed, “If you’re the earlier riser then why am I the one being woken up?”

“I was wondering if you had some time this morning to go somewhere with me.” He asked with a smile. 

She woke up a bit more at that, accept the cup of coffee and rocked on her feet, “I guess since I’m already up. But I can’t leave Lucy alone.”

“That’s fine, in fact, bring her along.”

\-----

They all piled into Mark’s car as he drove them 20 minutes outside city limits. Heiran watched, intrigued as to how quickly the concrete jungle turned into lush greenery. Mark turned into a dirt road that had morphed back into the pavement as he wove between tree trunks. 

“Where are we?” Lucy asked in awe as she pressed her nose against the window. 

He glanced at her through the rearview mirror and smile, “Just a little while longer. We’re almost there.”

Heiran turned away from the trees around them and looked over at Mark. She loved catching glimpses of him now. He glowed whenever she saw him. Even when he was dragging himself out of his apartment for work, his face was brighter, fuller. He didn’t look like he dreaded walking out the door every day. 

He seemed truly genuinely happy, he took joy in the little things that he never had the time or care to appreciate when he worked under GOT7. She was sure adjusting to a more 'normal' life must've been hard but seemed almost at peace now. Seeing him now, it was like he was more honest to himself and it was different than the version she had fallen in love with before. 

He was different but she had still fallen for him the same. 

“Here we are.” 

Heiran looked ahead where a beautiful little house sat amongst the trees, “What is this?”

“Get out and I’ll show you.” He said with a grin. 

Heiran watched in wonder when Mark pulled out a key and unlocked the door. They all stepped in and Heiran took a sharp breath at what was inside. It was beautiful and spacious with plants in every corner. Lucy ventured into the house, looking around the living room that managed to look both pristine and lived in at the same time. 

Soft cushions, terracotta and beige coloured rugs, her eyes didn’t know where to look at first. She followed Mark as he showed her the kitchen, the dining room, took her up the stairs to show her the bedrooms and home office. 

It wasn’t until she was inspecting the beautiful decor, minimalist paintings hung on every wall, burnt orange blankets draped over furniture that she realized he had been giving her a tour, “Wait, so what is this? It’s beautiful but I’m confused. Is this your new place? Did you buy this?”

“No, not technically.” He said as they made their way back to the living room. They stood with Lucy in front of the window that displayed the backyard, it was large with a modest patio. She could already map out a small garden with her eyes.

She loved every inch of the house and envy nibbled at her that someone got to the property first. “What does ‘not technically’ mean?”

“It means I didn’t buy the house. I bought the land. I built the house.” 

She stared at him with wide eyes, “What? How?”

“Well, I hired professional people to build it. I just designed it.” He said while staring out at the field.

“When?” He had been out of prison for a few months, there was no way the construction went that fast.

He looked over at Lucy before turning back out the window, “I came up with the design when I was _gone_ and gave the plans to Jinyoung who passed it onto the contractors. He was my eyes and ears when I couldn’t be there myself. Turns out I have a knack for architecture and design.“

It took a moment for it to sink in, he had designed a house while he was in prison and got it built so that it’d be ready for him when he got out. 

“Wait, if you have this house why have you been living in the apartment?” She asked, 

He turned to her and smoothed her hair back, taking great care and tenderness with the action, an action he didn’t do as much as he used to, “Because this house isn’t for me. I built it for you.”

“What?!” She exclaimed. Her heart leapt into her throat, men barely bought her flowers, she could confidently say this was the first time a man bought her a house.

But he just gave her a soft smile that squeezed her heart until she couldn’t breathe, “It’s your happy place, your mind palace for your emotions but in real life. A private place for you and Lucy, with plants and paintings and a big backyard.”

“Mark.” She breathed out. She couldn’t believe he remembered something she had said in passing. He turned a coping mechanism into something she could touch and live in.

He hummed, his fingers trailing down the side of her neck before letting his hand drop, “The house is already in your name. Jinyoung kept me in the loop in case you went and bought your own house, luckily you didn’t. When you mentioned possibly needing a new space, I thought maybe you’d want this one.”

She grabbed his arm, her eyes frantically flickering over his face, “You’re not serious.”

“You don’t have to keep it, I know it’s a big commitment, you can always sell it or rent it out.” He suggested when he saw the look on her face. 

“This is too much. You built me a house, Mark. I can’t accept this.” She whispered. He went from getting her mail for her to building her an entire house in a second. 

He shook his head, “Please take it. I won’t pressure you into it because I have no idea if you like it enough to live in it, but this place is meant for you. It's yours.”

“I don’t know what to say.” She said quietly, “No one’s ever done something like this for me…for us.”

Lucy was staring up at him with the same awestruck look Heiran had on her face. “We get to live here?”

“If you and your mom like it.” Mark said. 

Lucy looked at her mom, “Mom, can we?”

“I'm not sure. Sunshine, why don’t you go explore a little bit while I talk to Mark.” Heiran said. 

Lucy raced off to the room that she guessed would be hers and Heiran faced him, “You built me a house.”

“I thought we already covered this.” He said with a little smile. 

She shook her head in disbelief, “Why?”

“The same reason I tattooed the word duchess on my arm.” He said simply. 

She gave him a dirty look, “You haven’t told me the reason for that.”

His lips quirked, “Because you are the love of my life."

She was speechless, so he just continued, “I realized it in prison. That there wasn’t ever going to be anyone else for me. You were all I wanted. There wouldn't ever be anyone else. You could show me a woman with all the same qualities that I love so much about you and I wouldn’t lay a finger on her because she wouldn’t be you. And you’ve somehow re-wired me in a way where I can’t want anyone else but you.”

“I’ve dated other people.” She admitted. 

He nodded slowly, “I understand. You were single, you don’t need to explain anything to me.”

She shook her head, “It was awful. Being with other men, I dated them just to spite you because you wanted me to move on but it was terrible. None of them spoke to me the way that you do, none of them touched me the way that you did. God, Mark. I missed you so much.”

He cupped her cheeks, thumbing at her skin, “I missed you too, baobei.”

There was tension in the air, maybe it was the name she hadn't heard too long or maybe it was the disbelief and sudden sense of urgency that they were standing too far apart but when she pulled him close enough that all she had to do was push up onto her toes for their lips to meet, it melted away.

They'd known each other for a while and been in love with each other for much longer but when they kissed it felt like the lightness of a new honest, _real_ love. Not the heaviness of a kiss goodbye or the swan song of a one night stand. It was raw, stripping them of anything that wasn't each other, ridding them of any self-control.

They both moaned the minute their lips touched like they could finally release everything that had pent up inside of them all this time. It was like a switch flipped and they both just gave in. The sound tumbled shamelessly into her mouth, his entire body coming alive as his fingers slipped to the back of her neck. She pulled him towards her, taking steps back under her spine hit the window. Heiran let out a please hum as she moved her lips with his, 2 years worth of frustration, anger and longing managed to melt into one long kiss. Her fingers trailed up his neck and twisted into the thick waves of his hair. She licked into his mouth, heat flushing through her body when he parted his lips with a plaint groan.

Mark’s hands bound around her waist and smoothed his palms up her back, exploring the span of her body. His touch left little sparks that still sizzled when he moved on. In the entire time that they’d known each other, they had only kissed twice yet somehow it was like she knew the feeling so well. When he kissed her the third time, she felt nostalgic. It was a sensation that she knew like the back of her hand that still had the trepidation and tenderness of someone exploring unknown territories. 

After memorizing every inch of the inside of his mouth, she pulled back to give them a chance to catch a proper breath.

“Mark?” She panted, her eyes were glassy and her cheeks were rosy and Mark couldn’t give a shit about the lush field in her backyard. Not when the best view was in front of him and out of breath. “I love you.”

His eyes widened and his first reaction was to shake his head, “You don’t mean that, baobei. It’s been almost 3 years.” 

“Of course I mean it.” She pressed with knitted brows. 

He shook his head, “It’s okay, I know that telling you that I love you before I went away wasn’t fair. I know you think you have to say it back now but so much time has passed, we’re not the same people.”

“You’re right but I still love you.” She said firmly. “No amount of time will change that.” 

He dug his fingernails into the base of her skull, massaging her gently, “I don’t deserve that kind of unconditional love.”

“Yes, you do.” She wrapped her arms around his waist.

“Let me date you.” He whispered. “Let me do this right with dates and first kisses and hand-holding. I want to take my time so you get to have all of that.”

She frowned, “But…the house.”

He hugged her back, “Is yours. Dating me isn’t a condition of owning the house. It’s 100% yours regardless of how you feel about me. I made it for you and Lucy. I’m not moving in, not until we’re both ready and it’s what we want. So for now, I’m going to live in the apartment and we’re going to do this the right way.”

“You said that you built this house to be my happy place.” She said against his chest.

He nodded, his thumb drawing lazy circles again the side of her throat, “That’s true.”

“But I told you that you were a part of my happy place.”

He let out a stunned laugh, “I like you so much, wow.”

“Move in, then.” She pled, “It’s been 2 years without you. Live with us. Be my family. Make this my happy place.”

He didn’t think she’d so convincing but he knew, deep down, that for this gift to sit right with him, she had to live in it with Lucy on their own first. He didn’t do it to trick her into being with him. “I promise one day I’ll move in with you, but until then let’s wait. I swear that I’ll be your family long before I ever come live you.”

“Okay. Fine.” She breathed out, she hadn’t realized he was practically holding her up with his body, she had basically gone limp. “But I’m going not going to stop convincing you to stay.”

He smiled, “I’ll get Jinyoung and Taeyong and a bunch of those guys to help you and Lucy move in whenever you’re ready."

“Mark?” She called out quietly.

He bumped her head with his, “Yeah, baobei?”

“You’re the best thing to ever happen to this family.” 

\-----

The moving in process wasn’t as stressful as Heiran thought. Maybe because this time she wasn’t juggling a young Lucy and the movers on her own. 

Instead, she had a group of friends who played loud music while carrying in furniture and boxes. Mark, Taeyong, Ten, Jinyoung, and Yeonhee all helped out until everything was in its place. Star and Eun had come over once the move was complete to toast to the new place. 

By the time that everyone went back home, Heiran’s feet were sore, her back ached but as she walked around her new living room where Ten had hung photos of her, Lucy and friends, she didn’t remember what it was like to feel lonely anymore. 

“Hey, I put the leftover pizza slices in the fridge. Everything else is clean, so I think I’m going to head out.” Mark said as he put his coat on. 

Heiran followed him to the door, “It’s late, why don’t you just stay the night? It’s not safe to drive in the dark.”

“Nice try.” He snorted. She was relentless but he never persuaded her to stop trying to find creative ways to get him to spend the night. “Where’s Lucy?”

She crossed her arms over her chest, “For someone who didn’t do any actual moving, she was really tired and fell asleep.” 

“Think she likes her new room?” He asked. 

Heiran nodded with a small smile, “You did a really good job, the easel, the reading nook. She’s never going to leave her room.” It nearly brought tears to her eyes that he paid such close attention to how much Lucy had grown and changed and incorporated all of it into her room.

“What about your room?” He asked. 

She took a deep breath and met his eyes, “The bed’s nice. Big.”

“You’re good.” He said with a shake of his head, knowing what she was trying to do. Enticing him with images of her alone in a bed that she wanted him to share with her. He would be lying if images like that didn't keep him awake late at night. Sometimes he'd turn on his side and imagine her next to him, close enough for him to reach out and pull her warmth into his.

She tilted her head, “Is it working?” 

“Do you want to get dinner, tomorrow?” He asked instead.

Her eyes widened, her stomach fluttered as she looked up at him. His hair had grown out a little, a mop of black hair that softened the hardened look his tattoos gave him. 

“A date?” She asked. 

He grinned, “The first of many, I hop—“

“Yes!” She blurted, making him laugh. 

A knock on the door pulled them apart. Mark opened the door and stilled when Yugyeom stared back at them. He cleared his throat uncomfortably, “I brought a vase.”

Heiran looked at Mark worriedly, she knew that Yugyeom had eased off the topic of her and Mark but they hadn’t spoken about it ever since Mark was released. She wasn’t even sure he knew that the house was a gift or that Mark had lived across the hall from her. 

“Hey.” She said softly, “Come in.”

Yugyeom gave her a tight smile before stepping in. She hugged him before taking the vase out of his hands, “It’s beautiful, Yugyeom. Um…you remember Mark.”

He glanced over at him and exchanged a small nod before facing her, “Sorry I didn’t call ahead, I wasn’t even sure I was going to be able to get out of work.”

“Don’t worry, you’re always welcome.” She said brightly, hoping her smile eased the tension. 

Yugyeom looked around her house as she led them to the kitchen, “This place is amazing, Heiran.”

Heiran didn’t know how he’d react if he knew it was a present from Mark, so she fluttered around with her words, “Yeah, it’s perfect.”

“The office space is my favourite.” Yugyeom said as he leaned over the sink to look into the backyard. 

Heiran nodded, “Mine to—wait, how do you know what the office looks like?”

Yugyeom turned and leaned against the counter before nodding at Mark, “He showed me the design before it got built.”

She looked at Mark with wide eyes, “You two met?”

“He visited me in prison.” Mark said. He hadn’t moved from the door. 

“What? Why didn’t you tell me?” She asked Yugyeom. 

He just shrugged, “I wanted to see what you saw in him.”

“And did you?” She asked quietly. 

Yugyeom smiled and looked over her shoulder at Mark who looked at Heiran like he was holding his soul out to her, “Yeah, I did.”

\-----

**_A Few Years Ago_ **

_Mark and Yugyeom had been sitting in silence for 5 minutes and he didn’t know how he was going to make it through the other 40 minutes if they were going to keep up this stalemate._

_Ever since he told Heiran to stop visiting him, his only visitors had been Jinyoung and Taeyong, though the latter spent most of the visitation yelling at him for keeping such big secrets from him for so long. So, when Yugyeom was seated, waiting for him, Mark didn’t know what to think._

_“Why are you here?” Mark finally asked._

_Yugyeom’s brow jumped, “Not sure, to be honest.”_

_“Oh.” Mark said blankly._

_Yugyeom pursed his lips, “I just don’t get it.”_

_“Get what?” Mark asked._

_He shook his head, “I still don’t understand why you did it. You had the resources to jump on a plane and fly far, far away. We had nothing concrete to arrest you but you just turned yourself in without anyone asking you to.”_

_“I already said it during the interrogation. I wanted to take down GOT7 for trafficking and I had my own fuck-ups that I needed to pay for.” He said._

_Yugyeom didn’t believe him, “I think you’re lying to me. I think even the most righteous person wouldn’t willingly go to jail. Not when you had the chance not to.”_

_“I don’t know what you want me to say.” Mark said plainly._

_Yugyeom leaned forward on the table, “Heiran’s my best friend, I’ve known her for a long time and I’ll always be protective of her. But I trust her, I trust her enough that if she put Lucy’s life in your hands, there must’ve been a good reason. So, I think there’s more to whatever relationship you two have.”_

_Mark said nothing and Yugyeom just sighed in annoyance, “She said you told her you love her. Those aren’t words she takes lightly. But all of a sudden she’s crying and miserable. She hasn’t visited you in ages either. I started wracking my mind trying to figure out why you’re here, why she’s hurt and what you did wrong. I think it has to do with you coming into my precinct. So why don’t you stop lying and skip to the part where you tell me the truth.”_

_“I’d always pick Heiran over myself.” He said simply._

_Yugyeom scrutinized Mark’s face, “You turned yourself in for her, didn’t you?”_

_“Yes.” Mark said, “But I also did it because I deserve it.”_

_He tilted his head curiously, “And you think she’s going to wait for you until you get out?”_

_“No, I don’t.” Mark replied without missing a beat, “I told her not to bother.”_

_"You don't want her back?" Yugyeom asked curiously._

_Mark snorted, "I want her back so badly it doesn't make sense to me. But that'd be selfish."_

_Yugyeom nodded to himself like he had gotten what he came for before standing but Mark stopped him, "You knew long before I became a wanted person, didn't you?"_

_"You can't be surprised that I figured it out when you have the name of the criminal organization you worked for literally tattooed on your knuckles." Yugyeom deadpanned._

_Mark tilted his head, "So why didn't you arrest me the minute you found out?"_

_"It was too late."_

_"For what?"_

_Yugyeom smiled slightly, the first one in a while, "She was already in love with you. Arresting you would have meant losing my best friend."_

_"So you waited until I came to you?" Mark asked incredulously._

_He shrugged, "Either you'd come to us or I'd make another officer slap on handcuffs. It was just a matter of waiting."_

_Mark inspected Yugyeom closely, his eyes scattering over his face in scrutiny before he sat up a little bit straighter, “Actually since you’re already here, there's something I want your opinion on.”_

\-----

When Mark told Heiran he wanted to date her properly instead of just picking off where they left off, she thought it was pointless. After everything had been through together she didn’t understand why he wanted to start all over. 

But she respected him enough to agree. 

Then he took her out on a first date and it made sense. 

He showed up at her door looking heartbreakingly, wonderfully handsome with a bouquet of flowers. His eyes had trailed up and down, a dark smirk curving up when he saw the killer heels on her feet but as quickly as the expression appeared, it vanished into an addicting smile that she struggled to not kiss it off his face. He held her hand and walked her through the city as they shared conversation. He told her what it was like managing and owning a successful bar and how hard it had been at the start, adapting to a new environment. 

He took her to the same Italian restaurant where she had drunkenly propositioned him and laughed when her face turned beet red when she recognized the bar. The dinner was a blur, where she found herself staring at the way the candle reflected in his eyes, too distracted by his beauty that she didn’t blush when he told her how gorgeous she looked. 

And when the night was all over he kissed her sweetly at her door and wished her goodnight before retreating to his apartment. When she closed the door behind her and leaned against it, she finally understood why this was so important to him. 

He didn’t want their relationship to be indistinguishable from how they first met. He wanted to draw a line in the sand separating his role in her life as a member of GOT7 and his role as a law-abiding bar owner hopelessly in love with the girl across the hall. 

And she knew that this was going to be the start of something that would never end.

\-----

**_Years Later_ **

Heiran stood with her back to the bed, sorting through her closet hoping not to wake up the man alseep under thick blankets. She pushed aside the set of leather jackets and men's long-sleeved shirts that hung neatly next to her clothes in order to make it to her blouses. 

A few years after dating, Mark had finally moved in and she found that living with him was even better than all the times he used to spend at her house before. It didn’t feel like he was a guest lingering around hoping not to overstay his welcome. 

It felt like it was his house too. One with his family.

People might look at her and Mark's pasts and think that they were dealt a bad hand. And typically Heiran might be inclined to agree. 

But not anymore. 

In fact, she thought she was one of the luckiest people out there. 

The three of them, Lucy, Heiran, and Mark were a family made up of broken people who were left alone in the world but they somehow all ended up together. They were making each other less lonely by loving and supporting each other the way they all dreamed of. 

They all came from broken families but they fit together in the shape of their very own chosen family. 

She pulled her sleep shirt off and reached for a peach silk blouse. Dragging the fabric up her shoulders, her fingers stilled at the buttons when the sound of Mark groaning filled the room. 

"Oh no, but I was enjoying the view so much." He complained. 

Her lips curved up as she glanced over her shoulder to see Mark watching her from the bed, propped up by a modest pile of pillows. She bit down her lip as her eyes roamed around his bare chest, tattoos that had faded with time still graced his skin like art. 

"Yeah, you made that clear last night." She said, her heart racing when Mark's smile turned into a smirk.

Mark as a boyfriend was better than anything she could've ever imagined. He flirted with her endlessly, praising her until she was a helpless mess of blush and shy giggles. His touch still left searing burns across her body and his smile still left her a little dazed. She never pegged him to be such a romantic but she wasn't going to complain about his love for impromptu dates, red roses, and California king beds.

It didn't take long before his hand was in her back pocket and people started seeing Mark Tuan and Seo Heiran as a couple. 

And Lucy, he was so good with her, protective but understanding, determined to give her room to be independent but watching over her in case she ever stumbled. All the times when she second-guessed her parenting skills, he'd be there, reassuring her, and taking the weight off her shoulders.

"You're spacing out." He mused while running a hand through his hair. 

She snapped out of her head and walked back to the bed, climbing over the blankets with her shirt unbuttoned until she was straddling his lap, "Morning."

"Morning, baobei." He murmured, kissing her sweetly while his fingers squeezed at her waist, "Work?"

She pulled away to huff in response, "Yeah, a client has a 9AM flight but he wants to go over some paperwork before he leaves."

"But you'll clock out early, right? You should come to the bar tonight, Lucy's going to be at a sleepover, anyways." He suggested while kissing her jaw.

She could not be more thankful for the fact that the bar's success meant Mark could hire more people and not be forced to work late every night. It meant she could have him like this for more mornings.

Her eyes slipped shut as she sank into his embrace, she wished she could just stay like this and shirk all her responsibilities, "Yeah? A little happy hour pick-me-up?"

"Hot girlfriends drink for free." He whispered. 

She laughed, squeezing him tight, "Oh, really? You use that promo often?"

"More than the MILF discou--Ow!" He winced when she tugged at his hair.

"I'll bring Yeonhee and Jinyoung. We could make it a double date." She offered with a glare.

He rubbed the sore spot on his scalp before peering up at her, "Sure, but they pay extra." 

She shook her head with a snort before kissing him one more time and resisting his attempts to keep her in bed to continue getting dressed.

If she had to face all that pain early in her life in order to get to this point, she'd say it was worth it.

\-----

Mark sat across from Lucy in a small ice-cream parlour near their house, watching her eat the bright orange scoop he had bought for her. He never understood her obsession with the colourful flavors. He always found them to taste too sweet and too artificial but then again, maybe he was just worried that her sugar intake was too high.

This new phase of his life didn’t take as long to adapt to than he expected. He had fallen in step with Heiran and Lucy as though he had always been in their lives. Years had past but he never once felt out of place. 

It was practically the same as when he was tasked to protect them but this time he didn’t have to pretend that everything he did was out of duty. Now he could admit that everything he did was out of love.

And when he found the spot in both their lives where he fit in, where he belonged, it was like something inside of him clicked and the stars aligned. 

It was at that moment that he realized that this was where he was supposed to be and all the families he thought he was a part of before were just placeholders for this. 

“So…what’s going on?” Lucy asked while taking another scoop, her headphones hung around her neck. 

Lucy’s teenage years had snuck up on him, she was growing too fast. It felt like it was just yesterday when she’d curl up next to him when he’d fall asleep in front of the tv. Now, she was a young woman practicing how to drive while Mark dug his nails into the leather car seat whenever she took a sharp turn. 

It was hard coming to terms that she was becoming closer to an adult with every year that passed, “What do you mean?”

“I love you, dad but we don’t really sit down to eat ice-cream together in the middle of the day. Is this an intervention or something? Are you going to ask me if I’m doing drugs or having sex?” She asked blankly. 

The transition from Mark to ‘dad’ had happened overnight and he locked up when she first let it slip. He saw the surprise in Heiran's eyes and then the concern when she saw the way he froze. It took a lot of cajoling from Heiran who had convinced him that it was okay before he started relaxing into it. He had gotten a sun tattoo on his index finger to commemorate the moment.

He scrunched his face up and pushed his little cup of ice cream away, “No, that’s not why we’re sitting down. Although since we’re on the topic, what’s would be your answer?”

“No and no. But if the answers were yes, it would just be weed and that I’m using protection.” She said with a goofy grin. 

He grimaced, “That’s not funny, sunshine. Don’t joke like that around your Mom. She’ll take you seriously and refuse you let you out of her sight.” 

“Yeah, yeah. So, wait, then what’s going on? Why did you bring me here without Mom?” She asked. 

Mark gulped and played with his fingers, a nervous gesture that he didn’t do often, “You know how your Mom and I had been together for a long time now, and we both care about each other a lot? I love her. And I love you. Both of you. More than anything else in the world. You both are everything to me.”

“I know, dad.” Lucy said with furrowed brows. 

He nodded, “So, what would you say if I wanted to make that permanent? To stay in your lives forever.”

Lucy looked completely confused, “Wait, I thought you were already staying forever. I sorta thought you moving in sealed the deal.”

“What if I made it official? What if I want to marry your mother?”

Her eyes widened and the little spoon hung between her lips, “Seriously?”

He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a little velvet box, opening it to show her a sparkling diamond ring, “Seriously.”

“Woah.” Lucy whispered. 

He chewed on the inside of his cheek, “So…what do you say?”

“Are you…are you joking? Of course, I want you to marry Mom!” She exclaimed, “Oh my god, I’m so excited. This is the best news ever!”

His face softened as he watched her clap her hands, “Really? Are you sure you’re okay with this because you just say the word and I’ll put everything on hold.”

“Dad, this is the best news ever. I’m totally okay with this. Like more than okay with this. What kid wouldn't want their mom and dad to get married? I’m so glad Mom found you.” She said, her eyes glittering under florescent lights.

He let out a sigh of relief, “Good. But remember, we have to keep this a secret from your Mom, I need to figure out the best way to ask her.”

She nodded enthusiastically before leaping out of her seat to fling her arms around him, “We’re going to be a family!”

“Sunshine, we always were.” He said while squeezing her tight, wishing he could stop time and stop her from growing up. 

Lucy plopped down next to him and picked up her ice cream, a huge smile on her face. He watched her when a pang of nostalgia and wistfulness, "Do you remember the last time we were here?"

"Uh...sorta. It was a long time ago, though, right?" She said. 

He nodded, "There was a...miscommunication and someone else had picked you up, we didn't know where you were and your mother was a wreck thinking you were missing. I'd never seen her like that." He left out the part of the story where she was technically kidnapped by a member of his former gang. 

"Oh, I think I remember that." She said, perking up. "You came to pick me up and then we came here to buy ice cream."

He grinned, handing her a napkin when some of the ice cream smudge on her chin, "Yeah. I bought you a cone."

"Was that before or after you and mom dated?" She asked. 

"Before." Mark said softly, "I was kind of working for your mom around that time but that was the moment when I felt your mother's pain like it was mine."

Lucy paused and looked up at him, "What do you mean?"

"I realized that if anything happened to you or your mother I wouldn't know what to do with myself especially with you being so young. Suddenly, I didn't feel like I was just your mother's coworker." His voice warmed around the edges, low like a kindling fire. It was the same tone he used whenever she'd have nightmares or come home crying because a boy broke her heart.

The voice of safety and security.

"Is that when you knew you loved her?" Lucy asked. 

Mark took a long breath and pondered her question, "I think I loved your mom for a long time but I didn't realize it until a lot later. But I knew that she meant a lot to me and her happiness was something I wanted to protect. I felt that way about you too. You're my kid. I'd die for you and your Mom."

"How did you know you loved her?" She leaned forward on her elbows as if they were sharing secrets. 

He scrunched his nose up and pinched her cheek, "When I knew that deep down, all I wanted in life was to be a part of her family."

"And now you are." Lucy whispered with wide eyes like she still believed in Santa.

He nodded, surprised at the emotion that clawed up his throat, "Yeah, now I am."

When they came home, Heiran was waiting for them with her arms cross and a glare, “Is this a thing now? You two just going out for ice-cream without me? Is that what we’re doing?”

Mark and Lucy shared a small smile before she ran up to her room with a giggle. Mark held out a plastic bag with a container of Heiran’s favourite flavour, “Brought you some, baobei.”

She grunted unhappily, taking the bag from him but before she turned around, he slipped his arms around her waist and pulled her to his chest, “Are you that mad, you big baby?”

“I can’t have you two scheming and plotting against me.” She pouted. "I need to supervise you both." 

He laughed roughly and pressed a lingering kiss to the underside of her jaw. She melted in his hold, sinking against his body. Despite the years they shared together, she still craved his touch like it was something she had been starved of. 

“There was no scheming whatsoever, duchess.” He murmured into her throat, “It was just good old-fashion wholesome daddy-daughter bonding time.” 

Her lips twitched when he brought his face back levelled to hers, “That _does_ sound pretty wholesome.”

“Squeezing in as much time with her as I can before she hits the age where she needs fake IDs and starts sneaking into the bar with her friends when I’m not there.” He muttered. 

She looked horrified, “Don’t even start with that. We’ve raised a very polite law-abiding young lady.”

He rocked her side to side and hummed, “I don’t know, she texts Yeonhee too much. I bet she’d get her an ID.”

Heiran laughed and he smiled as her fingers drifted to his hair to play with the strands. He watched the ways her eyes curved up as she focused on the top of his head. Sometimes it made him a little dizzy when his mind would zoom out of their lives and he’d see where he started and where he wanted to end up. 

No one ever told him that he’d achieve big things. 

How could they? His parents were gamblers and addicts that gave him up. He was educated in his fists and got work handling guns and knives. Who would ever think a man like that could achieve big things?

When Heiran’s eyes locked back into his and flickered to his lips, he felt the air rush out of his lungs. He bent his head down and met her lips halfway. It was like molten gold rushed through his veins when she smiled against his mouth. 

He wished he could tell his younger self to not give up hope. 

Because he’d achieve big things one day.

\-----

“Wow, that’s…huge. How expensive was it?”

Mark chuckled as he took the engagement ring back from Ten. He had been to the tattoo shop that Ten worked at countless times but this was the first time he wasn’t here as a customer. He was seated behind the front desk next to Ten showing him a little black velvet box. 

“Expensive. So expensive that I’m pretty sure she’s going to be mad.” He snorted. 

Ten shook his head, “Well, I’m happy for you. Always figured you two would get married. When are you going to ask her?”

“I have no idea, to be honest.”

He looked at Mark curiously, “What do you mean?”

Mark sighed and slid the ring back into his pocket, “We have a good thing going on right now, everything’s finally in place and we’ve been so happy. I don’t want to mess up the dynamic and I don’t even know if marriage is something Heiran wants. We’ve talked about it when we first started dating but it never came up after.”

“So why did you decide to propose now?” Ten asked while crossing his arms.

Mark’s shoulders relaxed, “I don’t know. I just woke up next to her and realized I wanted to be her husband. I kinda always wanted to, I guess.”

“You know her best.” Ten said softly, “Deep down, has she ever given you a reason to believe you’re not the one she wants to spend the rest of her life with?”

“No.”

Ten shrugged, “Then it’s pretty obvious to me. Ask her. If she says yes then awesome, you have a smokin’ wife. And if she says no, it’s not because she doesn’t want you or doesn't love you but because marriage isn’t what she wants. It won’t be the end of your relationship.”

“You’re smart for someone who doesn’t do relationships.” Mark muttered.

The way Ten smiled, Mark wondered if maybe he was wrong about that. He’d have to press him about that later. The shop doors open and Mark turned, his eyes wide when Heiran walked through with a smile.

“Baobei?” He asked, dazed. 

Ten grinned at her, “What’s up, princess?”

“Thought I'd stop by. My meeting ended early and you said you'd be here.” She said while fiddling with her fingers.

Mark blinked before scanning her worriedly, “Is everything okay?”

“I actually came to ask you for a favour.”

Her request led them to the back room where she was seated in front of a small table. She watched Mark with a fond smile as he puttered around. 

“Why are you the nervous one? You offered.” She said, amused.

Mark dropped down in the seat across from her, setting down his tools, “I offered when I was stabbed, bleeding on your floor.”

“Still stands.” She said cheekily. 

He snapped black latex gloves on his hands before reaching for her hand. He spread her fingers before holding her ring finger, “Are you absolutely sure you want a tattoo?”

“Yes, baby. And I want you to do it.” She said softly. 

His eyes flickered to hers and he softened, fuck he was so goddamn weak for her. “Ten’s better.”

“But you’re mine.” She whispered. 

“Shit.” He muttered before standing to lean over the table and crush his lips against hers. He could feel her laugh against his mouth but he didn’t care. He loved her. He loved her so, so, so much. He was allowed to act like a love-stupid idiot. 

When he pulled away she beamed, “Yeah, same.”

He let out a huff of a laugh before sitting back down, “Then let’s do this, what do you want on your finger?”

 _A ring._ He wished she’d say. 

She used her free hand to pull out her phone and show him the picture she had saved. It was of an interlocking moon and sun, simple enough that even he could do it and make it look nice.

“Pretty.” He murmured with a warm smile. It matched the same sun he had on his own finger. 

He began prepping, kissing her finger before sterilizing her skin. He set up the tattoo gun and gave her one last look, “Ready?”

She nodded and leaned forward to brush their lips together, “Ready.”

There was a little pain at first, making her wince but eventually, she had grown used to the little pin-pricks. He tried talking to take her mind off of it, “You think Lucy’s gonna ask for her own tattoo when she’s 18 now that we both have them?”

“Probably but I’ll only say yes if she gets matching ones with ours.” Heiran joked. 

Mark smiled, surpassing a laugh to keep his hand steady, “It’s a little corny if she gets a tattoo about herself.”

“Not if she gets the moon too.” Heiran suggested.

Mark lifted the gun off and grabbed a tissue to wipe at her skin, “Why?”

“The moon is for you.”

He froze, lifting his head to stare at her, “It is?”

“She’s my sun, you’re my moon. Our own little galaxy.” Her voice faded in his ears as she drew the life of him out. 

He dropped his eyes to her finger where the incomplete moon outline was staring back at him. He felt his throat close and a part of him wanted to cry because this couldn’t be real. There was no way she was a real person. He wasn’t used to good things happening to him. 

Heiran’s entire existence was one giant good thing.

“You’re such a softie.”

He jerked his head up at her gentle voice and rolled his eyes when he found her grinning at him, “Says the woman who's getting a tattoo about her boyfriend.”

“Hey!” She snapped with a pout. "You got one about me before we were even dating."

He shook his head and picked up the needle but before he turned it on, he squeezed her fingers, “I love you, you know that, right?”

“Always.” She said back, “And I love you, you know _that_ , right?”

He smiled and turned on the gun so that the sound of buzzing filled the room. 

“Always.”

\-----

He could see Heiran from across the room talking to someone who was boring her, it should be a crime, forcing such a brilliant woman to waste her time on such dullness. 

It was a gala to celebrate Sunshine Consulting officially going public. What started as a minor operation out of her home had grown into a 6-floor high-rise dedicated to her company in the heart of the financial district. 

He moved towards them slowly and purposefully, stopping only when he ended up next to her. He was sure Jinyoung and Yeonhee were somewhere around here as well. Heiran had made Yeonhee a partner once they started to expand, so it was likely she was celebrating with her boyfriend on the endless flow of champagne that was being passed around. 

He was also positive that he saw Eun and Yugyeom go into a closet together which was something he’d have to bring up to Heiran once they were alone. 

She turned and caught him only a few steps away and her entire expression melted, her eyes sparkled and a warm smile split her lips as she turned her entire body to face him.

“Hi, handsome.” She breathed out. She looked so pretty in the long dark blue silk dress that hung off her body perfectly. 

He fought back the shiver and shudder as the stiffness in his shoulders that always appeared when he was in big crowds evaporated. It was remarkable how she was capable of so much for him while doing so little. He used to think it was because he was at her mercy but he had grown to better understand that it wasn’t mercy. 

Mercy meant ownership of power, but what they had wasn’t power over each other. It was love. An even give and take, sharing over strength and insecurity in order to make each other better, happier, more whole people. 

He realized that he had been silently staring at his lover’s face for too long and eased into a soft murmur, “Hi, baby girl.” 

The man across from Heiran who had effectively been ignored through the entire exchange held his hand out to him. “Hello, it’s nice to meet you, I worked with Heiran’s company a few months ago on a social media campaign for one of her clients.” 

Mark stared at his hand for a second too long before returning the grasp and giving him a small nod. Heiran smiled, amused at the power move. It brought her so much joy seeing Mark interact with these people. He never brown-nosed or networked, he just floated and whoever dared to speak to him, would end up walking away feeling awkward or miffed. 

This guy was awkward, he cleared his throat and gave them a strained smile and when he realized that Herian wasn’t making an introduction and Mark wasn’t making small talk, made quick work of excusing himself.

She stepped closer now that they were alone and he was flooded with that phenomenal fucking perfume of hers.

“You’re so shit at small—“ 

He couldn’t help himself, he leaned forward and pressed his lips against her, letting the shiver take hold of him when she groaned against him. He pulled away and waited for her to open her eyes. “Have I told you lately that you are the most beautiful woman that ever existed?”

A growl burned the back of her throat as she looked away from him, it was so easy for her to get distracted whenever Mark was in her peripheral, “I have to be here for another two hours do not make me ditch my own party.”

“I never suggested such a thing, baby girl.” He said simply, draping his arm around her waist.

Her frown grew, “You only call me baby girl when you want me to ditch and follow you into a bedroom.”

He smiled, his chest rumbling with a laugh and despite her scowl, her heart soared. He pulled her to him, “You make it sound like I only love you for your body, _duchess_.”

“What a preposterous thought. Why else would you have paid Jinyoung to watch Lucy tonight and booked a disgustingly expensive hotel room?”

She expected him to laugh but he just smoothed his palm further down her back and kissed the side of her head before brushing his lips against her ear. “Because it’s been a while since I ruined one of your dresses, baby girl.”

A gasp crumbled in her throat as she started to shake, her entire body flinching at the threat of promises. If only she knew about the little velvet box burning a hole in his pocket. 

“Fuck it.” She whispered, gathering the hem of her dress, "Let’s ditc--”

“Seo Heiran? Is that you?”

Mark laughed roughly at the way her face fell when a woman nearly ran over the other guests to get to her.

"I’ll get us a drink.” He said softly, leaving her to chat as he wove through the crowd to the bar at the back of the room. 

He caught the bartender’s eye, “Two glasses of champagne.”

Once he was handed two flutes, he turned to find Heiran only to have one of the glasses taken out of his hand. “I’m more of a Prosecco man but I appreciate the thought.”

Mark’s eyes widened when Jaebum lifted the glass to his lips and took a big gulp. His hair was trimmed neatly, the long locks gone but other than that, he looked the same even though Mark hadn’t seen him since he dropped him off in front of the police precinct years ago. 

“What are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be at a beach in some tropical country?” Mark asked, still in shock. 

Jaebum brushed invisible dust off his suit jacket, “I couldn’t miss such an important day. Plus I’m a sucker for fancy parties.”

“A text would’ve been nice.” Mark grumbled. 

Jaebum’s lips quirked up, “Back at you. I’ve had the same number.”

“Touché.” Mark said under his breath, making Jaebum chuckle. 

Jaebum looked at the crowd of guests, “She’s done well for herself.”

“Yeah, I know.” Mark said proudly, watching her float from one person to another. “All on her own.”

Jaebum raised a brow at him, “Not entirely on her own. You stuck around longer than I would’ve guessed.”

“What are you talking about?” Mark asked defensively.

He shrugged, “I knew you two loved each other but a part of me didn’t think you’d really last.”

“What.” Mark deadpanned, his voice dropping a few octaves. 

Jaebum smirked, “I’d like to think we’re kind of friends now Mark, I’m not gonna be cruel.”

"Too late. Just spit it out.” Mark barked. 

“All your closest relationships have been dysfunctional, you and me, you and your old Boss, you and Yeonhee, hell even you and Heiran met under dysfunctional means. I figured a romantic relationship would be equally as dysfunctional. I thought you both were attracted to each other because of the adrenaline of your lives, the fear, the guns, the kidnapping, it was so abnormal that once the threat was gone and you two were forced to be a normal couple you’d snap." He said it so matter-a-factly.

“I’d…snap?” Mark asked.

“You’d start fighting, you’d resent her for locking you down, you’d grow distant, maybe meet someone else and then leave her, then I would try my final shot at winning her ba—“

Jaebum’s words were cut off but the sound of Mark shattering the champagne flute in his hand from squeezing it too hard. The crowd around them looked over but his eyes were set on the back of Heiran’s head across the ballroom. Why was he here talking to a-friend-but-not-really-a-friend when he could be over there, touching her, listening to her mumble sarcastic jabs about each person they pass while she leaned against him?

Jaebum hissed unhappily before lifting Mark’s bleeding hand and inspecting it, pulling out the small shards of glass before shoving a bunch of napkins in it to soak up the blood, “It was a hypothetical, Mark.”

“Shut up.” He hissed. 

Jaebum sighed, “Look that’s just what I wished happened because I held out for her, you proved me wrong. You love her, like _love_ her love her and I’m pretty sure she _loves_ _you_ loves you too.”

“What the fuck does that even mean?” Mark asked with a frown.

Jaebum smiled, “It means I’m guessing that bump in your coat pocket isn’t a weirdly shaped lighter.”

Mark said nothing and just continued to watch Heiran glide around the room like the goddess she was. Jaebum watched his face closely before softening, “I’m sorry it took you so long to have all of this. I’m really fucking happy for you, man. I’m happy you finally found a family good enough for you.”

“Thanks, Jaebum.” Mark said before turning back to the bar to wave the bartender over, “But if you ever fucking stand in front of me and imply I’d cheat on Heiran, I’ll kill you and I don’t care if we’re friends.”

He picked up two drinks and looked at Jaebum who was just grinning, “First time I've heard you call us friends.”

Mark rolled his eyes. “It was good to see you.”

“Likewise, and don’t be a stranger.” Jaebum mused. 

Mark nodded, “You should visit soon. I’m sure Heiran would like to see you.”

“Spoken like a man confident that his girlfriend’s ex won’t steal her away from him.” Jaebum teased. 

"Correction," Mark smirked before turning away, “My soon-to-be wife’s ex.” 

Jaebum let out a booming laugh as he watched Mark walk away. 

By the time he reached Heiran, she looked grateful to see his face, "Hey, what took you so long? It’s torture out here."

"Long line." He said while handing her a glass. 

She hummed before taking a hearty gulp of her drink, "I think I’ve spoken to everyone here or maybe not, everyone’s starting to look the same to me. God, my feet hurt."

"I love you."

Heiran did a double-take at his sudden confession before beaming up at him and wrapping an arm around his hips, “I love you too. But is this because I said my feet were sore?”

"No, baobei, I love you in a way that doesn’t really make sense to me because it feels so fucking good. The last few years have been the happiest and most healing years of my life. Fuck, I’m the luckiest man alive and I’m not really planning for a life without you, I wouldn’t know what that looked like, and I don’t really know where I’m going with this." He said, rambling. 

She just blinked at him, Mark wasn’t one to go into romantic tangents out of nowhere and although it sent the butterflies in her stomach up in a frenzy, she had more pressing matters at hand, "Mark?"

“Yeah?”

“Why is there blood on this glass?”

He looked at the stem of the glass where his bloody fingerprints were, “Shit.”

He took it from her and set it down on the tray of a passing waiter. She looked at his hands, upset, “Is Jaebum here or something?”

“Wh—yeah, how did you know?” He asked, surprised. 

She shook her head but he could see her eyes scan the room in search of the face she hadn’t seen in forever, “He seems to always make you bleed.”

Her eyes landed back on him, she reached out and brushed his hair, “Let’s go.”

He trailed after her as she led them out of the ballroom, wondering if she was mad or disappointed that he spoiled her night, “Where are we going?”

Then she glanced back over her shoulder with a dark look in her eye and his skin went up in flames. He was so grateful he brought the ring with him tonight, “We’re ditching, baby boy.” 

\-----

Anyone who thought they knew Mark would say that he was a totally different man after he was released from prison. They’d say that he used to be cold, calculating, and ruthless. They’d say he didn’t know what it was like to care about anyone other than himself and his job. 

They’d say that Mark being married, in love, taking care of a daughter that wasn’t biologically his, was out of character. They’d see his hand naturally drifting to hold his wife’s, tugging her close so he could press a kiss on whatever swath of skin he could reach and say it was like he was a totally different man. 

They’d see him sitting on the sidelines of his daughter’s soccer games, cheering the loudest and do a double-take, thinking surely that wasn’t _The_ Mark Tuan. They’d think that prison had straightened him, that he’d had some sort of epiphany or revelation that made him a family man on the straight and narrow. 

Those were the people who didn’t really know Mark at all.

Because the real Mark had always been like that. 

It's just that no one ever looked close enough to see it.

_He was halfway down the stairs when she called his name, making him look over at her._

_“If my father ever gave you a directive to kill me, would you do it?”_

_Mark levelled her with a stare that made her sweat, she wondered if this was how he looked at his victims before pulling the trigger. With indifference and apathy, like her life didn’t have any value to him and that he wouldn't mourn her death._

_“The little bug, she’s 9, right?” He asked plainly._

_She bristled at his question, “Yeah. Why?”_

_“She’s too young.”_

_Her eyes widened and felt her heart race. She wanted him out of her house now because the longer he was by her staircase, the longer the dark omen was going to linger over their heads. “Too young for what?”_

_He turned away and started walking down the stairs, “She’s too young to not have a mother.”_

_She blinked and stood at the top, watching him with every step he took, “Is that a no? No, you won’t kill me?”_

_He didn’t reply, a man of few words, but for someone who could knock someone out with his bare fists, he closed the door behind him gently._

Yeah, they didn’t know him at all. 

He was learning that blood didn’t bind families together. He also came to terms with the fact that some of the people who you spent years with didn’t know you as well as you thought. 

But it was okay.

He didn’t need other people knowing him. He didn’t need people who pretended they shared the same blood to act like they knew the real him. And he didn't need biological parents in order for him to be a good one. He knew who he was and what he wanted.

He stared at the wedding band on his finger. 

“Hey, why are you still awake?” Heiran whispered as she tip-toed into their bedroom, home after a long workday. 

He shook his head and watched her start undressing, replacing silk with cotton and makeup with moisturizer before climbing in next to him. “I just wanted to wait up for you."

She hummed and he welcomed her into his arms with a kiss. "Good, because I missed you all day."

The people who truly knew him were enough for him.

They were his blood now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cannot believe this fic has finally come to an end. With a massive epilogue/final chapter to boot. I feel like every chapter was a long process to come together but I wrote the last three in a blink of an eye. It's crazy that I first updated this story on AFF in 2019 and it's coming to an end in 2021.
> 
> I want to thank everyone who read, subscribed, commented, and enjoyed this story. It motivated me so much you don’t even understand what it means to me. I know you see authors say it all the time but everything you write or say about my stories makes me so happy and makes me excited to pick up laptop and start writing. 
> 
> At the time that I’m writing this note we’re on chapter 24, so idk what story will be coming up next, or if I’ll be writing anything at all. I wanted to make sure I completed this story so I forced myself to not really think about anything other than this story so I didn’t really get the chance to brainstorm new ideas so we’ll see.
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed this story and please PLEASE tell me all your thoughts and feelings because I can’t wait to read everything you guys have to say about this fic
> 
> Thank you once more.  
> -loviet

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is Loviet from AFF! I am crossposting my story from AFF. You can confirm this is really me on my twitter: @Realloviet
> 
> You can also find this fic on AFF: https://www.asianfanfics.com/story/view/1413648/old-blood-new-money


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